Fribourg election on 8 November has 14 candidates for 7 seats

Who is running

A centre-right alliance of the Centre, the Radical-Liberal Party and the Swiss People's Party holds five of the seven seats in the Council of State, the canton's government. Radical-Liberals Didier Castella and Romain Collaud and Philippe Demierre of the People's Party, the government's president in 2026, seek another term. The Centre fields Marie-France Roth Pasquier, a member of the Swiss National Council, and Markus Julmy, a member of the cantonal parliament.

The left alliance of the Social Democratic Party, the Greens and the Centre Left aims to win three seats. Its candidates are Sylvie Bonvin-Sansonnens, the Green elected to the government in 2021; Social Democrats Lise-Marie Graden, prefect of the Sarine district, Kirthana Wickramasingam and Stephanie Tschopp; and Vincent Pfister of the Centre Left.

Four others run outside the alliances: Leonardo Gomez Mariaca of the Green Liberals, Ayana Abdulle and Sandy Maillard of Dignité Action Solidarité, which won seven seats in the city of Fribourg's parliament in March 2026, and Claudio Rugo of the Parti club des artistes.

How the vote works

Voters tick up to seven names on a single ballot that lists all candidates, used for the first time. A candidate who receives more than half the votes is elected in the first round. If seats stay open, the candidates with the most votes win a second round on 29 November 2026.

On the same day voters elect the 110 members of the Grand Council, the canton's parliament, by proportional representation in eight constituencies, and one prefect for each district. Polling stations close at noon local time.

How the race got here

Three members of the government do not stand again: Jean-Pierre Siggen and Olivier Curty of the Centre and Social Democrat Jean-François Steiert. Curty, a member since 2017, said so on 24 April 2026.

The Centre and the Social Democrats chose their candidates on 30 May 2026. The Social Democrats want to keep Steiert's seat and win back the one they lost to the Greens in 2021. By the deadline of 28 September 2026 the State Chancellery counted 14 candidates for the government, against 19 in 2021, and 686 for the Grand Council.

What happens next

1. Sep 28Deadline for candidates
2. today
3. Nov 8Voting day
4. Nov 11Lists for a second round are filed
5. Nov 29Second round, if seats stay open

The count starts when the polls close. Lists for a second round must be filed by noon on 11 November 2026.

The Grand Council swears in the new government and parliament at its constituent session in December 2026. Members of the Council of State take office on the first day of the following month.