Three candidates secured election to the Conseil d’Etat fribourgeois on November 8, 2026, leaving four seats to be decided in a second round on November 29.
The initial round of voting at the Hôtel cantonal de Fribourg established clear leads for the Entente fribourgeoise, an alliance comprising Le Centre, the PLR, and the UDC. Incumbent PLR candidates Romain Collaud and Didier Castella surpassed the absolute majority threshold alongside centrist candidate Marie-France Roth Pasquier, according to Le Matin.
Romain Collaud finished in first place with 44’217 votes, or 55.90% of the suffrages. Didier Castella gathered 55.35%, and Marie-France Roth Pasquier secured 53.06%. The remaining two candidates of the Entente fribourgeoise — centrist Markus Julmy and incumbent UDC member Philippe Demierre — placed fourth and fifth with 48.41% and 46.89% of the vote respectively, falling short of the absolute majority required for a first-round win.
Behind the leading trio, the right-wing alliance successfully placed all five of its nominees in the top five spots across the canton’s 120 communes. The participation rate for the Sunday ballot stood at 36.09%.
Farther down the initial standings, PVL candidate Leonardo Gomez Mariaca finished in eleventh position with 15.85% of the vote. He was followed by Das-Was candidates Ayana Abdulle and Sandy Maillard from the extreme left, who registered 14.78% and 13.72% respectively, while Claudio Rugo of the Parti des artistes obtained 8.67%.
Following their initial success, the three successful candidates from the Entente fribourgeoise expressed strong satisfaction while emphasizing the need to maintain momentum. Didier Castella stated that the overarching goal for the upcoming runoff is to secure five seats for the alliance in the executive body.
He emphasized that the group remains attentive, engaged, and ambitious. Romain Collaud echoed these sentiments, pointing out that two distinct camps emerged clearly from Sunday’s contest, pitting the Entente fribourgeoise against the left-wing coalition, while stressing the importance of maintaining humility despite the functional success of their partnership.
Following Tuesday evening meetings, the Alliance de gauche confirmed it will field three candidates for the November 29 runoff. The coalition brings together the PS, the Green party, and Centre Gauche.
In accordance with pre-election agreements, two contenders who finished outside the top tier on Sunday withdrew from the race: Vincent Pfister of Centre Gauche and Kirthana Wickramasingam of the PS. The remaining three candidates are incumbent Green councillor Sylvie Bonvin-Sansonnens, along with socialists Lise-Marie Graden and Stephanie Tschopp. In the initial vote, Lise-Marie Graden secured 43.89%, Sylvie Bonvin-Sansonnens obtained 41.23%, and Stephanie Tschopp reached 35.86%. Meanwhile, Vincent Pfister captured 31.99% and Kirthana Wickramasingam collected 30.90%.
clear ambition: to win a third left-wing seat, to durably rebalance the cantonal government
Fribourg Socialist Party
The coalition added in its statement, reported by RTS: A new campaign is beginning. Fribourg differently, it is possible.
Five contenders remain in contention for the four remaining government seats when voters return to the polls on November 29. The three candidates representing the left alliance will face two men from the Entente fribourgeoise: centrist Markus Julmy and UDC incumbent Philippe Demierre.