The far-right Swiss People's Party, led by Ueli Maurer, shrugged off charges of racism Oct. 22 as it celebrated the best election showing of any party in Switzerland in nearly a century.

The SVP, the largest party, won 29 percent of the vote and 62 seats in the 200-seat lower house, the National Council, gaining seven seats over 2003.

Among the traditional main forces on the Swiss political landscape, the Socialists suffered what the Tages Anzeiger newspaper labeled a "historic thrashing," losing nine seats to leave them on 43 with 19.5 percent of the vote.