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GENEVA (AP) — The nationalist Swiss People's Party has won a second seat in Switzerland's seven-member government following an election victory in October, pushing the country's executive a bit further right.
Lawmakers elected Guy Parmelin, one of three candidates proposed by the party, to the governing Federal Council Wednesday.
The government is a broad coalition of Switzerland's main political forces, ranging from the anti-immigration Swiss People's Party to the center-left Social Democrats.
A vacancy arose when outgoing Finance Minister Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf announced her departure after October's elections, which reinforced the status of the People's Party as the biggest in parliament.
Widmer-Schlumpf was a moderate People's Party member when elected to the government in 2007 against leaders' wishes. She and her supporters were kicked out of the party and formed a new conservative group.
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