Regine Sauter to stand down in 2027 as Zurich’s FDP faces a changing of the guard

Zurich FDP parliamentarian Regine Sauter will not stand again in Switzerland’s federal elections in autumn 2027. Announcing her decision in a personal letter, the economic policy specialist said she wanted to make way for the next political generation after what will be 12 years in the National Council, parliament’s lower house. Her departure marks another significant change for Zurich’s liberal FDP: Hans-Peter Portmann has already said he will not seek re-election either.

Sauter said she had reached her decision “after careful consideration”. Helping shape Switzerland’s framework for public and economic life had always been a privilege, she wrote, and she had approached the task “with great respect and much joy”. This is not an immediate resignation, however. She intends to continue her parliamentary work until the legislative term ends, pressing ahead with several major policy files.

EU relations and pensions remain the priorities

For her final year in the Federal Palace, Sauter has set clear priorities. She intends to work “with full energy” towards a successful conclusion to the Bilaterals III package of agreements with the European Union and reform of the AHV, Switzerland’s state old-age and survivors’ insurance scheme. As chair of the National Council’s Social Security and Health Committee, she also wants to complete as much outstanding business as possible before the term ends.

These issues reach well beyond Zurich. Switzerland’s relationship with the EU affects economic co-operation with neighbouring countries and access to the European market. The AHV is central to financial security in retirement. Both concern the long-term foundations on which residents and businesses depend.

They also reflect the priorities that have shaped Sauter’s politics: a liberal economic order, an outward-looking foreign policy and a strong research sector. Zurich’s FDP praised her work to reduce bureaucracy, encourage innovation and secure sound conditions for Swiss companies. It expressed regret at her decision and thanked her for her “great and tireless commitment to liberal politics”.

Party president Filippo Leutenegger said: “Regine Sauter combines fundamental liberal values with extensive policy knowledge. Whether in health policy or in Zurich’s business environment, she always seeks workable solutions.”

From Zurich’s parliament to Bern

Sauter’s parliamentary career began in Zurich’s Cantonal Council, the canton’s legislature, where she served from 2004 to 2015. Zurich voters elected her to the National Council in autumn 2015. By the 2027 elections, she will have spent more than two decades in cantonal and federal parliaments.

Born in Schaffhausen in 1966, Sauter grew up in Flurlingen in Zurich’s Weinland region. She studied political science at the University of St Gallen and completed her doctorate in 1995 with a thesis on data protection. Alongside her elected mandates, she held prominent positions in business and healthcare organisations.

She was director of the Zurich Chamber of Commerce from 2012 until the end of 2023 and has chaired the hospital association H+ since 2023. Business and healthcare have therefore been central to her work outside parliament as well as within it.

In 2018, her name was even discussed as a possible candidate for the Federal Council, Switzerland’s seven-member government. After Johann Schneider-Ammann announced his departure, however, Sauter decided not to stand. Instead, she backed Karin Keller-Sutter, who was subsequently elected.

A lost Senate seat and a changing delegation

Sauter suffered the biggest setback of her political career in the 2023 elections. Following Ruedi Noser’s retirement, she stood for the FDP to defend its Zurich seat in the Council of States, the federal parliament’s upper house. With around 120,000 votes, she finished third in the first round, behind Daniel Jositsch, who secured election outright, and Swiss People’s Party candidate Gregor Rutz.

She withdrew before the second round. Tiana Moser, then a National Council member for the Green Liberals, eventually won the seat. That ended roughly four decades of Zurich FDP representation in the upper house. Sauter herself was re-elected to the National Council and continued her work there.

Her planned departure adds to the changes facing Zurich’s five-member FDP delegation in the National Council. She and Portmann will both leave the electoral field in 2027. Another vacancy could arise if Andri Silberschmidt is elected to Zurich’s cantonal government in the spring. The delegation’s other two sitting members are Beat Walti and Bettina Balmer.

For the cantonal party, the next election is therefore about more than defending seats. It must also replace established political figures. The extent of that turnover will depend partly on the cantonal government election result.

A new role in the Bergell valley

Sauter is already looking towards new projects. In spring 2027, she will become chair of the Garbald Foundation, which works to preserve Villa Garbald in Graubünden’s Bergell valley. The villa is the only building by Gottfried Semper south of the Alps. The foundation runs it as a centre for scientific and cultural exchange.

The appointment will take Sauter beyond Zurich business circles and federal politics into a different institutional setting. Initially, the roles will overlap: her foundation chairmanship begins in spring, while her final parliamentary term ends only after the federal elections in autumn 2027.

Until then, her focus remains on leaving parliament with tangible progress on the unfinished business she has identified. The transition to her next role will begin before her work in Bern is complete.