An electrical sliding contact switch having a housing in which a common contact body and at least one selective contact body having a contact surface are arranged. A sliding area including electrically insulating material is arranged adjacent to the contact area of the selective contact body. A contactor that is in continuous electrically conducting connection with the common contact body and has at least one sliding contact is either in electrically conducting connection with the selective contact body or touches the sliding area. An actuating member is furthermore arranged in the housing such that upon actuation, it slidingly moves the at least one sliding contact of the contactor on a sliding path from the contact surface of the selective contact body into the sliding area and/or out of the sliding area to the contact surface of the selective contact body. Furthermore, embodied in the sliding path, are zones that are not touched by the sliding contacts during transit of the sliding area.