Page "Swiss People's Party" Paragraph 3

The early origins of the SVP goes back to the late 1910s, when numerous cantonal farmers ' parties where founded in agrarian, Protestant, German-speaking parts of Switzerland.

While the Free Democratic Party had earlier been a popular party for farmers, this changed during World War I when the party had mainly defended the interests of industrialists and consumer circles.

When proportional representation was introduced in 1919, the new farmers ' parties won significant electoral support, especially in Zürich and Bern, and eventually also gained representation in parliament and government.

In 1936, a representative party was founded on the national level, called the Party of Farmers, Traders and Independents ( BGB ).

During the 1930s, the BGB entered the mainstream of Swiss politics as a right-wing conservative party in the bourgeois bloc.

While the party opposed any kind of socialist ideas such as internationalism and anti-militarism, it sought to represent local Swiss traders and farmers against big business and international capital.