Cause of death clarified It is now known what caused Alfred Heer's unexpected death

The Zurich National Councillor Alfred Heer died unexpectedly in mid-September. It is now known: He died of acute heart failure.

The cause of death of Zurich SVP National Councillor Alfred Heer has been clarified. He died of acute heart failure, as the Zurich public prosecutor's office announced at the request of the "Tages-Anzeiger" newspaper. The possibility of third-party fault has been ruled out. The investigation has now been concluded.

Alfred Heer died unexpectedly on the night of September 19 at the age of 63. The city police confirmed at the time that they had been called out to a medical emergency in District 4 on Friday night. Heer's death could only be confirmed at the scene.

Heer was a long-standing member of the National Council and the Council of Europe. He entered the political arena in 1994 when he was elected to the Zurich City Parliament, after which he was a member of the Cantonal Council and, since 2007, a member of the National Council. He was elected to the Council of Europe in 2011. He led the cantonal party in Zurich from 2009 to 2016 and took a hard line on migration policy.

Political ambitions

In the National Council, he was a member of the Control Committee and the Control Delegation, among other things. His presidency in 2021/22 included the investigation of the "Crypto AG" case. He also acted as a kind of inspector in the Council of Europe. From 2016 to 2018, he strengthened the fight against corruption within the parliamentary assembly.

Most recently, he supported former Federal Councillor Alain Berset (SP) in his election as Secretary General of the Council of Europe. In terms of foreign policy, Heer was known as a staunch supporter of a pro-Israel policy. He visited the country several times.

During his political career, Heer expressed ambitions for various other offices - he wanted to run for the Council of States elections in 2019, but then withdrew his candidacy in favor of that of Weltwoche publisher and National Councillor Roger Köppel.

Heer made another attempt in 2023, but was defeated within the party by his fellow National Councillor Gregor Rutz, who did not make it into the small chamber in the election.

Heer lived in the city of Zurich and ran an IT company together with his party colleague Mauro Tuena. He is survived by an adult daughter.