Centre Party to file new criminal complaint against Valérie Dittli
Wednesday 9th September 2026 on 20:30 in
Switzerland
Switzerland’s Centre Party in Vaud plans to file a criminal complaint against State Councillor Valérie Dittli over a bank account held by its Lavaux-Oron section, SRF reported. Party president Giancarlo Sergi confirmed the plan to the Keystone-SDA news agency on Wednesday. The complaint is expected to be filed on Thursday.
The account was opened at Vaud Cantonal Bank in 2025 to finance Dittli’s campaign for another term in the cantonal government. The section suspects that Dittli tried to close the account and transfer its balance of 22,000 Swiss francs.
Dittli had individual signing authority for the account and immediately rejected the allegations. The section has since blocked the account and withdrawn her authority. It continues to demand the money, while the party rejects that claim.
The party’s lawyer, Samuel Thétaz, said the complaint to the Vaud prosecutor’s office would seek to clarify the circumstances surrounding a request to close the account submitted to Vaud Cantonal Bank. It would also establish whether the account was intended for the party’s election campaign, exclusively for Dittli’s campaign or more broadly to support her political activities.
Several media reports have said the 22,000 francs came from donations by private individuals and companies, particularly through Dittli’s personal website.
The controversy became public about two weeks ago, when Dittli announced that she was leaving the Centre Party. She plans to run again for the Vaud government next February with her newly founded party, Mouvement libéral.
Dittli is already the subject of two other criminal complaints before Vaud justice authorities. The first, opened in June 2026, concerns the awarding of mandates to the former president of the Commission for Rural Land Ownership. The second was launched on October 7, 2025, over alleged abuse of office linked to an attempt to overturn legally binding tax assessments. The prosecutor’s office is continuing its investigations.