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Toni Brunner

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Toni Brunner
President of the Swiss People's Party
In office
1 March 2008 – 23 April 2016
Preceded byUeli Maurer
Succeeded byAlbert Rösti
Member of the National Council
In office
4 December 1995 – 31 December 2018
ConstituencySt. Gallen
Personal details
Born
Anton Brunner

(1974-08-23) 23 August 1974 (age 50)
Wattwil, Switzerland
Political partySwiss People's Party
ProfessionFarmer

Anton "Toni" Brunner (born 23 August 1974) is a Swiss farmer and politician who presided over the Swiss People's Party (SVP/UDC) from 2008 to 2016. He was a member of the National Council from 1995 to 2018.

Biography

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Born in Wattwil (St. Gallen), Brunner was first elected to the federal parliament in 1995 at the age of 21, as the youngest member ever.[1] In addition to working on his farm, he operated an internet radio station aimed at farmers, and chaired the St. Gallen section of his party.

On 1 March 2008, Brunner succeeded Ueli Maurer as chairman of the national party.[1] Brunner is close to the party's figurehead, Christoph Blocher, who serves as one of several vice chairmen.[1]

In January 2016, soon after the 2015 federal election, where the Swiss People's Party received record gains, Brunner announced that he would step down as the president of the SVP in April.[2][3] He was succeeded by Albert Rösti on 23 April 2016.[4][5]

Brunner is a member of the Campaign for an Independent and Neutral Switzerland.[6]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "People's Party elects new leader". Swissinfo. 1 March 2008.
  2. ^ "Head of Switzerland's largest party to step down - Yahoo News". News.yahoo.com. 9 January 2016. Retrieved 25 January 2016.
  3. ^ ""Wir haben Themen aufgegriffen, die die Leute beschäftigen"". Tages-Anzeiger. 9 January 2016. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  4. ^ "Albert Rösti Übernimmt in "Zeiten des Erfolgs"". Schweizer Radio und Fernsehen. 23 April 2016. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
  5. ^ Jürgensen, Nadine (24 April 2016). "Einer, Der es Taktvoll Mag". Neue Zürcher Zeitung. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
  6. ^ ASIN Bulletin, Élections fédérales 2015: 43 membres de l'ASIN à Berne, n°178, december 2015, p.3
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