# 1890 Swiss federal election

Federal elections were held in Switzerland on 26 October 1890. The Radical Left narrowly retained its majority in the National Council.

## Electoral system

The 147 members of the National Council were elected in 52 single- and multi-member constituencies using a three-round voting system of the Exhaustive ballot or a multiple-winner variant thereof. To be elected, in the first or second round a candidate or candidates had to receive a vote from a majority of the voters. If not all the seats were filled in the first or second round, it went to a third round. Again the least-popular candidate was eliminated but now only a plurality was required to determine the winner(s).
Voters could cast as many votes as there were seats in their constituency. There was one seat for every 20,000 citizens, with seats allocated to cantons based on that ratio.
The elections were held under the new Federal law concerning the elections of National Council members passed on 20 June 1890. Following the 1888 census (which had been brought forward from 1890 in order to redraw the constituencies prior to the elections) the number of seats was increased from 145 to 147, whilst the number of constituencies was increased from 49 to 52; Basel-Stadt, St. Gallen and Zürich all gained one seat, whilst Ticino lost a seat.

## Results
### National Council

Voter turnout was highest in Schaffhausen (where voting was compulsory) at 94.3% and lowest in Schwyz at 35.6%.
| | Radical Left | | 40.9 | 74 | +1 |
| | Catholic Right | | 25.6 | 35 | 0 |
| | Liberal Centre | | 15.7 | 20 | +1 |
| | Democratic Group | | 10.4 | 15 | +1 |
| | Social Democratic Party | | 3.6 | 1 | +1 |
| | Evangelical Right | | 2.4 | 2 | –2 |
| | Independents | | 1.4 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | | | 147 | +2 |
| Total votes | Total votes | 415,098 | – | | |
| Registered voters/turnout | Registered voters/turnout | 664,144 | 62.50 | | |
| Source: BFS (seats) ||||||

#### By constituency

| Constituency | Seats | Party | Seats won | Elected members |
| Zürich 1 | 6 | Liberal Centre | 3 | Konrad Cramer Arnold Bürkli Hans Konrad Pestalozzi |
| Zürich 1 | 6 | Democratic Group | 2 | Johann Jakob Schäppi Carl Theodor Curti |
| Zürich 1 | 6 | Social Democratic Party | 1 | Jakob Vogelsanger |
| Zürich 2 | 4 | Liberal Centre | 3 | Johann Heinrich Bühler Johann Jakob Abegg Johannes Eschmann |
| Zürich 2 | 4 | Democratic Group | 1 | Johann Jakob Keller |
| Zürich 3 | 4 | Democratic Group | 4 | Rudolf Geilinger Ludwig Forrer Johannes Stössel Albert Locher |
| Zürich 4 | 3 | Democratic Group | 2 | Friedrich Scheuchzer Johannes Moser |
| Zürich 4 | 3 | Liberal Centre | 1 | Heinrich Steinemann |
| Bern 5 | 5 | Radical Left | 5 | Matthäus Zurbuchen Arnold Gottlieb Bühler Johann Zürcher Johann Jakob Rebmann Carl Samuel Zyro |
| Bern 6 | 5 | Radical Left | 5 | Karl Stämpfli Eduard Müller Johann Jakob Hauser Rudolf Brunner Johann Jenny |
| Bern 7 | 4 | Radical Left | 4 | Fritz Bühlmann Adolf Müller Gottfried Joost Gottlieb Berger |
| Bern 8 | 4 | Radical Left | 2 | Ernst August Grieb Gottfried Bangerter |
| Bern 8 | 4 | Bern People's Party | 1 | Ulrich Burkhalter |
| Bern 8 | 4 | Liberal Centre | 1 | Jakob Adolf Roth |
| Bern 9 | 4 | Radical Left | 4 | Eduard Bähler Eduard Marti Johannes Zimmermann Rudolf Häni |
| Bern 10 | 3 | Radical Left | 3 | Pierre Jolissaint Joseph Stockmar Albert Gobat |
| Bern 11 | 2 | Catholic Right | 1 | Joseph Choquard |
| Bern 11 | 2 | Radical Left | 1 | Henri Cuenat |
| Lucerne 12 | 2 | Radical Left | 2 | Josef Vonmatt Friedrich Wüest |
| Lucerne 13 | 3 | Catholic Right | 3 | Candid Hochstrasser Josef Zemp Josef Erni |
| Lucerne 14 | 2 | Catholic Right | 2 | Franz Xaver Beck Josef Anton Schobinger |
| Uri 15 | 1 | Catholic Right | 1 | Franz Schmid |
| Schwyz 16 | 3 | Catholic Right | 3 | Vital Schwander Sr. Nikolaus Benziger Fridolin Holdener |
| Obwalden 17 | 1 | Catholic Right | 1 | Peter Anton Ming |
| Nidwalden 18 | 1 | Catholic Right | 1 | Hans von Matt Sr. |
| Glarus 19 | 2 | Democratic Group | 1 | Kaspar Schindler |
| Glarus 19 | 2 | Liberal Centre | 1 | Rudolf Gallati |
| Zug 20 | 1 | Catholic Right | 1 | Franz Hediger |
| Fribourg 21 | 2 | Radical Left | 1 | Friedrich Abraham Stock |
| Fribourg 21 | 2 | Catholic Right | 1 | Georges Python |
| Fribourg 22 | 2 | Catholic Right | 2 | Paul Aeby Louis de Wuilleret |
| Fribourg 23 | 2 | Catholic Right | 2 | Louis Grand Alphonse Théraulaz |
| Solothurn 24 | 4 | Radical Left | 3 | Joseph Gisi Wilhelm Vigier Albert Brosi |
| Solothurn 24 | 4 | Liberal Centre | 1 | Bernard Hammer |
| Basel-Stadt 25 | 4 | Radical Left | 3 | Ernst Brenner Eduard Eckenstein Hermann Kinkelin |
| Basel-Stadt 25 | 4 | Liberal Centre | 1 | Paul Speiser |
| Basel-Landschaft 26 | 3 | Radical Left | 3 | Emil Frey Jakob Buser Ambrosius Rosenmund |
| Schaffhausen 27 | 2 | Democratic Group | 1 | Wilhelm Joos |
| Schaffhausen 27 | 2 | Radical Left | 1 | Robert Grieshaber |
| Appenzell Ausserrhoden 28 | 3 | Liberal Centre | 2 | Johannes Zuberbühler Johann Jakob Sturzenegger |
| Appenzell Ausserrhoden 28 | 3 | Radical Left | 1 | Johann Conrad Sonderegger |
| Appenzell Innerhoden 29 | 1 | Catholic Right | 1 | J. B. E. Dähler |
| St. Gallen 30 | 2 | Radical Left | 1 | Johannes Blumer |
| St. Gallen 30 | 2 | Democratic Group | 1 | J. A. Scherrer-Füllemann |
| St. Gallen 31 | 2 | Catholic Right | 1 | Johann Gebhard Lutz |
| St. Gallen 31 | 2 | Evangelical Right | 1 | Christoph Tobler |
| St. Gallen 32 | 2 | Catholic Right | 2 | Wilhelm Good Johann Baptist Schubiger |
| St. Gallen 33 | 3 | Radical Left | 2 | Johann Georg Berlinger Carl Hilty |
| St. Gallen 33 | 3 | Democratic Group | 1 | Eduard Steiger |
| St. Gallen 34 | 2 | Catholic Right | 2 | Johann Joseph Keel Othmar Staub |
| Grisons 35 | 2 | Liberal Centre | 1 | Peter Theophil Bühler |
| Grisons 35 | 2 | Democratic Group | 1 | Matthäus Risch |
| Grisons 36 | 2 | Catholic Right | 2 | Caspar Decurtins Johann Schmid |
| Grisons 37 | 1 | Radical Left | 1 | Andrea Bezzola |
| Aargau 38 | 3 | Radical Left | 3 | Arnold Künzli Jakob Lüthy Erwin Kurz |
| Aargau 39 | 3 | Radical Left | 3 | Max Alphonse Erismann Hans Riniker Olivier Zschokke |
| Aargau 40 | 1 | Catholic Right | 1 | Robert Weissenbach |
| Aargau 41 | 3 | Liberal Centre | 3 | Emil Albert Baldinger Emil Welti Albert Ursprung |
| Thurgau 42 | 5 | Radical Left | 4 | Karl Alfred Fehr Friedrich Heinrich Häberlin Gustav Merkle Josef Anton Koch |
| Thurgau 42 | 5 | Liberal Centre | 1 | Jakob Huldreich Bachmann |
| Ticino 43 | 2 | Radical Left | 2 | Costantino Bernasconi Leone de Stoppani |
| Ticino 44 | 4 | Catholic Right | 4 | Filippo Bonzanigo Giuseppe Volonterio Ignazio Polar Agostino Gatti |
| Vaud 45 | 5 | Radical Left | 5 | Louis Ruchonnet Charles-Eugène Fonjallaz Eugène Ruffy Louis Chausson Louis Paschoud |
| Vaud 46 | 4 | Radical Left | 4 | Jacques-François Viquerat Louis Déglon Jean Cavat Ami Campiche |
| Vaud 47 | 3 | Radical Left | 3 | Adrien Thélin Charles Baud Jules Colomb |
| Valais 48 | 2 | Catholic Right | 2 | Hans Anton von Roten Victor de Chastonay |
| Valais 49 | 1 | Catholic Right | 1 | Joseph Kuntschen Sr. |
| Valais 50 | 2 | Radical Left | 1 | Émile Gaillard |
| Valais 50 | 2 | Catholic Right | 1 | Charles de Werra |
| Neuchâtel 51 | 5 | Radical Left | 5 | Numa Droz Robert Comtesse Arnold Grosjean Charles-Émile Tissot Alfred Jeanhenry |
| Geneva 52 | 5 | Liberal Centre | 3 | Eugène Richard Gustave Ador Jean-Étienne Dufour |
| Geneva 52 | 5 | Radical Left | 2 | Adrien Lachenal Georges Favon |
| Source: Gruner ||||||

### Council of States

| Party | Party | Seats | +/– |
| | Catholic Right | 17 | –1 |
| | Radical Left | 17 | 0 |
| | Democratic Group | 2 | –1 |
| | Liberal Centre | 2 | –2 |
| | Evangelical Right | 1 | 0 |
| | Social Democratic Party | 1 | New |
| | Independents | 1 | +1 |
| Vacant | Vacant | 3 | +3 |
| Total | Total | 44 | 0 |
| Source: The Federal Assembly ||||