View source for Swiss Democrats

{{Confused|Sweden Democrats|text=the [[Swedish Democrats]]}}{{More citations needed|reason=More sources needed. Discrepancies between existing sources, and some lack clarity|date=December 2016}}
{{Infobox Swiss political party
| party_name         = Swiss Democrats
| party_logo         = Schweizer Demokraten logo.svg
| party_wikicolourid = SD
| german_name        = Schweizer Demokraten
| french_name        = Démocrates Suisses
| italian_name       = Democratici Svizzeri
| romansh_name       = Democrats Svizers
| president          = [[Andreas Stahel]]
| council_members    = ''None''
| foundation         = 1961
| headquarters       = 
| ideology           = [[Nationalism|Swiss nationalism]]<br>[[Euroscepticism]]
| position           = {{nowrap|[[Right-wing politics|Right-wing]] to [[far-right]]<ref name="Nordsieck">{{cite web|url=http://www.parties-and-elections.de/switzerland.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091012220030/http://www.parties-and-elections.de/switzerland.html|archive-date=12 October 2009|last=Nordsieck|first=Wolfram|date=2007|title=Switzerland|website=Parties and Elections in Europe}}</ref>}}
| european           = 
| international      = 
| colours            = Red
| website            = {{url|http://www.schweizer-demokraten.ch/}}
}}

The '''Swiss Democrats''' ({{langx|de|Schweizer Demokraten}}; {{langx|fr|Démocrates Suisses}}; {{langx|it|Democratici Svizzeri}}; {{langx|rm|Democrats Svizers}}) is a [[nationalist]]<ref name="Nordsieck"/> [[list of political parties in Switzerland|political party]] in [[Switzerland]]. It was called the '''National Action against the Alienation of the People and the Home''' ({{langx|de|Nationale Aktion gegen Überfremdung von Volk und Heimat}}; ''NA'') until 1977 and the '''National Action for People and Home''' ({{langx|de|Nationale Aktion für Volk und Heimat}}) until 1990, when it was renamed to its current name.<ref name="HLS">{{cite encyclopedia |last=Weibel |first=Andrea |title=Schweizer Demokraten (SD) |url=http://www.hls-dhs-dss.ch/textes/d/D17409.php | encyclopedia=[[Historical Dictionary of Switzerland]] |access-date=16 December 2016 |language=de}}</ref>

==History==
The ''Nationale Aktion'' was originally a [[far-right]] [[xenophobic]] movement pursuing an [[anti-immigration]] agenda, founded in 1961.<ref name="HLS"/> The party "emerged as a reaction to the influx of foreign workers", particularly Italians, during this time.<ref name="HLS"/> The party submitted several [[Popular initiative (Switzerland)|popular initiatives]] that supported reduced immigration, most notably [[1970 Swiss referendums#June: Popular initiative against foreign infiltration|one in June 1970]] that narrowly failed.<ref name="HLS"/> Its first representative in the [[National Council (Switzerland)|National Council]] was [[James Schwarzenbach]], who was first elected in 1967.<ref name="HLS"/>

After a hostile split with Schwarzenbach in 1971, who formed the [[Republican Movement (Switzerland)|Republican Movement]], the party lost most of its momentum during the 1970s.<ref name="HLS"/> It had a strong resurgence in the early 1980s,{{sfn|Skenderovic|2009|p=62}} and it won five seats in the [[1991 Swiss federal election|1991 federal elections]], the most it had ever held.<ref name="HLS"/>

After another hostile split with former president [[Valentin Oehen]] in 1986, the party was renamed to its current name in 1990.<ref name="HLS"/> After 1998, the party lost nearly all significance in national politics because of the absorption of right-wing votes into the growing [[Swiss People's Party]].<ref name="HLS"/>

In the [[2003 Swiss federal election|2003 federal elections]], the party won 1.0% of the vote and one out of 200 seats in the [[National Council of Switzerland|National Council]]. This seat was lost in the [[2007 Swiss federal election|2007 elections]], where the SD fell to 0.5% of the popular vote. After their severe election loss, the party congress decided not to disband but to continue competing in elections, striving to return to parliament.{{citation needed|date=December 2016}}

==Federal elections==
{| class="wikitable"
|+ [[Federal Assembly of Switzerland]]<ref>{{cite web | title=Nationalratswahlen: Mandatsverteilung nach Parteien | url=https://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/de/home/statistiken/politik/wahlen.assetdetail.217184.html | website=bfs.admin.ch | date=December 2015 | access-date=December 17, 2016 | language=de}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title=Nationalratswahlen: Stärke der Parteien | url=https://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/de/home/statistiken/politik/wahlen/nationalratswahlen.assetdetail.217191.html | website=bfs.admin.ch | date=December 2015 | access-date=December 17, 2016 | language=de}}</ref>
! Election
! # of total votes
! % of popular vote
! # of seats won
|-
! [[1967 Swiss federal election|1967]]
| 6,275
| 0.6%
| 1
|-
! [[1971 Swiss federal election|1971]]
| 63,781
| 3.2% {{increase}}
| 4 {{increase}}
|-
! [[1975 Swiss federal election|1975]]
| 47,796	
| 2.5% {{decrease}}
| 2 {{decrease}}
|-
! [[1979 Swiss federal election|1979]]
| 24,257	
| 1.3% {{decrease}}
| 2 {{steady}}
|-
! [[1983 Swiss federal election|1983]]
| 57,592
| 2.9% {{increase}}
| 4 {{increase}}
|-
! [[1987 Swiss federal election|1987]]
| 49,104
| 2.5% {{decrease}}
| 3 {{decrease}}
|-
! [[1991 Swiss federal election|1991]]
| 69,297 {{increase}}
| 3.4% {{increase}}
| 5 {{increase}}
|-
! [[1995 Swiss federal election|1995]]
| 59,613 {{decrease}}
| 3.1% {{decrease}}
| 3 {{decrease}}
|-
! [[1999 Swiss federal election|1999]]
| 35,883 {{decrease}}
| 1.8% {{decrease}}
| 1 {{decrease}}
|-
! [[2003 Swiss federal election|2003]]
| 20,177 {{decrease}}
| 1.0% {{decrease}}
| 1 {{steady}}
|-
! [[2007 Swiss federal election|2007]]
| 12,609 {{decrease}}
| 0.5% {{decrease}}
| 0 {{decrease}}
|--
![[2011 Swiss federal election|2011]]
|
| 0.2% {{decrease}}
| 0 {{steady}}
|--
![[2015 Swiss federal election|2015]]
|3,052
| 0.1% {{decrease}}
| 0 {{steady}}
|--
![[2019 Swiss federal election|2019]]
|3,202
| 0.1% {{increase}}
| 0 {{steady}}
|--
![[2023 Swiss federal election|2023]]
|2,030
| 0.08% {{decrease}}
| 0 {{steady}}
|}

==Party presidents==
Source:<ref>{{cite web | title=Geschichte der NA - Schweizer Demokraten | url=http://www.schweizer-demokraten.ch/positionen/geschichte.shtml | website=schweizer-demokraten.ch | access-date=December 16, 2016 | language=de}}</ref>{{better source|reason=Party timeline is not very clear, so some of the dates are just guesses. Also, Schwarzenbach probably was not the first president|date=December 2016}}

*[[James Schwarzenbach]] (?–1971)
*Rudolf Weber (1971/72)
*[[Valentin Oehen]] (1972–1980)
*[[Hans Zwicky]] (1980–1986)
*[[Rudolf Keller (politician)|Rudolf Keller]] (1986–2005)
*[[Bernhard Hess]] (2005–2012)
*[[Andreas Stahel]] (2012–)

==See also==
*[[Freedom Party of Switzerland]].

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Bibliography==
* {{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wP7-a7NC0mkC|title=The radical right in Switzerland: continuity and change, 1945-2000 |first=Damir |last=Skenderovic |year=2009 |publisher=Berghahn Books |isbn=978-1-84545-580-4}}

==External links==
*{{in lang|de}} [http://www.schweizer-demokraten.ch/ Official web site]
*{{HLS|17409}}

{{Swiss political parties}}
{{Swiss far right}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Nationalist parties in Switzerland]]
[[Category:Political parties in Switzerland]]
[[Category:Conservative parties in Switzerland]]
[[Category:Eurosceptic parties in Switzerland]]
[[Category:National conservative parties]]
[[Category:Right-wing parties in Switzerland]]