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Women are increasingly numerous both within the party and among voters. Men, on the other hand, occupy a more marginal place.
After the municipal elections in Zurich last week, the left remains clearly in the majority.
20 minutes/Michael Scherrer
Hard, hard, these times, for men to impose themselves in left-wing parties. In question: the voters of the PS and the Greens increasingly shun male candidates, favoring women, often young. This is what emerges from an analysis of the twelve cantonal elections of the last two years, writes this Sunday the “NZZ am Sonntag”. During this time, the PS lost 31 seats, 30 of which were occupied by men.
Last week, during the municipal election in Zurich, the six outgoing PS candidates were all men. One of them is Urs Helfenstein. Asked by the Sunday, he says: “Traditionally, migrants had to make twice as much effort. Nowadays, I sometimes have the impression that as a man in the PS, we have to work twice as much.
The phenomenon is confirmed by political scientist Claude Longchamp. He calls it “violent”. According to him, the profile of voters on the left has changed over time. According to the latest SSR electoral barometer, 20% of women support the PS against only 14% of men.
Despite the situation, the PS does not intend to specifically support men. The party will also bet in the future on joint lists, explains co-president Mattea Meyer. According to her, it is thanks to the women’s strike that female candidates are now more visible than before.