Swiss People's Party
The Swiss People's Party (SVP) (German: Schweizerische Volkspartei, French: Union Démocratique du Centre, Italian: Unione Democratica del Centro, Romansh: Uniun Democratica dal Center) is a political party in Switzerland. The SVP is strongest in German-speaking areas of Switzerland and after the 2003 general election is the largest party in the Swiss lower house of parliament with 55 out of 200 seats.It was formed in 1971 as a merger of the BGB party (the farmer, trade and citizen party) and the Democratic Parties of the cantons of Glarus and Graubünden.
The SVP is a right wing party which campaigned against illegal immigration and crime in the 2003 general election. It is Swiss nationalist and opposed to Swiss membership of the United Nations. It opposed Swiss banks giving compensation to victims of the holocaust.
The party is led by Ueli Maurer, the most popular SVP politician is Christoph Blocher, leader of the SVP in Zürich.
See also: List of political parties in Switzerland
