Mitte names first Laufental candidate for Baselland government
Friday 23rd October 2026 on 19:45 in
Switzerland
Remo Oser, a 56-year-old IT entrepreneur and former mayor of Röschenz, has been nominated by the Mitte party for the Basel-Landschaft government, SRF reported. He is the first candidate from the Laufental region since it joined the canton in 1994.
Oser won the nomination at the party conference in Liestal, beating party president Simon Oberbeck in the first round. Supporters from the Laufental travelled to the event in minibuses to back his candidacy. Oser said he had not expected such strong support.
He hopes to defend the seat held by government councillor Anton Lauber. Oser said he wanted the region to be represented in Liestal, but added that voters should judge him on his record as a former mayor and entrepreneur, not only on his origins.
The Laufental was part of the canton of Bern for nearly 180 years before joining Basel-Landschaft. The region was assigned to Bern in 1815. When the canton of Jura was created in 1979, the Laufental became a Bernese exclave.
Residents initially rejected a move to Basel-Landschaft in 1983. The Federal Supreme Court later annulled that vote after it emerged that the Bern government had secretly paid money to the campaign opposing the change. In a second vote in 1989, 51.7 per cent backed the switch. The change took effect on January 1, 1994, after approval by Basel-Landschaft and Swiss voters.
The question of which canton the region belonged to is now largely settled, but some residents still feel politically marginalised. Laufen mayor Pascal Bolliger said a Laufental representative in the cantonal executive would be a visible sign of the region’s belonging and could strengthen trust in cantonal institutions. Laufental parliamentarian Rolf Stöcklin also said the candidacy showed the region had become part of Basel-Landschaft.
Oser’s nomination has put pressure on the traditional cooperation among centre-right parties in the canton. The SVP has refused to support him, saying he is too far to the left politically.