First female National Councillor from St. Gallen Political pioneer Hanna Sahlfeld-Singer is dead
The former St. Gallen National Councillor Hanna Sahlfeld-Singer has died. The obituary stated that she "will be fondly remembered as a pioneer for equality".
16.10.2025, 05:47
16.10.2025, 06:36
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- Hanna Sahlfeld-Singer was the first female SP National Councillor in the canton of St. Gallen between 1971 and 1975
- Due to constitutional regulations, she gave up her pastor's salary in order to work in parliament
- She died on October 11 in the Hanover region, where her funeral is also planned
Former St. Gallen National Councillor Hanna Sahlfeld-Singer has died, according to an obituary in the "St. Galler Tagblatt". The former SP politician would have been 82 years old next Friday.
Sahlfeld-Singer was the first female SP National Councillor from St. Gallen from 1971 to 1975 and was one of the first eleven female National Councillors ever, as the SP and the SP Women of the Canton of St. Gallen wrote in the advertisement. "She will be fondly remembered as a pioneer for equality and as a fighter for human rights, against poverty and for social justice," it continued.
Shortly before she took office, women in Switzerland had just been granted the right to vote at federal level. When Sahlfeld-Singer entered the Federal Palace on December 14, 1971, a porter told her that there were no guided tours on that day - to which she replied that she was there to be sworn in, as she said in an SRF interview in 2021.
Plaque in honor of the first female parliamentarians
The theologian and pastor from Flawil SG worked in Altstätten SG. Due to the constitutional article in force at the time, which prohibited clergymen from being elected to parliament, she gave up her pastor's salary, as reported by the reformed news portal ref.ch. The family later moved to Germany, where Sahlfeld-Singer and her husband worked as school pastors. The political pioneer died on October 11 in the Hanover region, where her funeral is also to take place.
In March 2019, commemorative plaques were unveiled in the National Council chamber in honor of the eleven first female National Councillors. The seat of the first female member of the Council of States, Lise Girardin, was also commemorated with a plaque in the Council of States chamber. At the International Women's Day ceremony, the then President of the National Council, Marina Carobbio, paid tribute to the achievements of Hanna Sahlfeld-Singer and her colleagues, who paved the way for future generations of women in Swiss politics.
