Sri Lankan-Born Farah Rumy Elected 2nd Vice President of Swiss National Council
“Sri Lankan-Born Leader in Swiss Parliament”
In Switzerland, history was made today at the opening of the Federal Assembly’s 2025 winter session. Sri Lankan-born Swiss parliamentarian Farah Rumy has been officially elected Second Vice-President of the National Council, becoming the first Swiss federal parliament leader of Sri Lankan heritage. The vote took place this Monday, December 1st, as the National Council elected its new presidium for the 2025/26 term.
The new Presiding College of the National Council has now been confirmed: Pierre-André Page, of the Swiss People’s Party (UDC/SVP), becomes President of the National Council for 2025/26. Katja Christ, from the Green Liberal Party, has been elected First Vice-President. And Farah Rumy, of the Social Democratic Party, will serve as Second Vice-President of the chamber. These positions are among the highest in Switzerland’s political system. Each year, the National Council and Council of States elect new leaders who preside over debates, steer parliamentary agendas, and represent Switzerland in international parliamentary diplomacy.
WHO IS FARAH RUMY?
Farah Rumy was born in Sri Lanka and moved to Switzerland as a child. A trained nurse and medical specialist, she entered politics through her work during the COVID-19 pandemic — an experience that pushed her to join the Social Democratic Party in 2020. She was first elected to the Solothurn Cantonal Council in 2021, where she focused on social policy and public health. After the 2023 federal elections, she moved up to the National Council as the first alternate when MP Franziska Roth vacated her seat. Rumy is now a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee and an alternate member of the Immunity Committee. In parliament, she has championed healthcare reforms, social equality, foreign policy, peace initiatives, and human rights. She also serves as co-president of her regional nursing union and remains active in local politics in the city of Grenchen. Rumy is the first Swiss federal parliamentarian of Sri Lankan descent, and now becomes the first to hold a leadership position within the National Council’s presidium.
On the same day, the upper chamber — the Council of States — elected Stefan Engler as its new President for the 2025/26 term. For Farah Rumy, today’s election marks a major milestone in Swiss political history — one that reflects the country’s evolving diversity and the growing influence of younger leaders in national decision-making.
By: SARIFUDEEN M Zahran (Journalist)
About The Author
