The National Coalition party (center right) won the general elections in Finland this Sunday, April 2, after a very tight ballot where the nationalists, who could enter the government, reached a record.
“ It’s a big win “Launched Petteri Orpo, a 53-year-old former minister, to the cheers of his supporters. “ We will start negotiations for a government in Finland “, said the one who now has the possibility of forging an alliance to the left with the outgoing Prime Minister Sanna Marin or with the anti-immigration and eurosceptic party of the Finns of Riikka Purra. Petteri Orpo had led the race in the polls during the campaign before seeing his lead melt away in the final sprint.
The party candidate who arrives first traditionally inherits the post of Prime Minister in Finland, provided that he can muster a majority in Parliament. The formation of a government usually takes several weeks or even months. Sanna Marin should therefore take over the interim next week when Finland will officially join NATO.
According to the almost final results involving more than 98% of the vote, the National Coalition party comes first with 48 of the 200 seats in Parliament, ahead of the Finns party (46) and the Social Democrats (43). The differences in voice are tenuous : 20.8% for the center right, 20.1% for the extreme right, and 19.9% for the SDP of Sanna Marin. The three parties are progressing from the last elections in 2019, in a three-way battle that has eclipsed the results of the other parties.
Despite progress from the 2019 elections, Sanna Marin admitted defeat. “ Congratulations to the winner of the elections, congratulations to the National Coalition, congratulations to the Party of the Finns, democracy has spoken “, did she say. Popular abroad as in Finland, it has established itself as a “ Rockstar prime minister ” but she divides more in her country, where she was criticized on public finances and inflation. The youngest head of government in the world when she came to power at the end of 2019, she was hailed for her good management of the Covid-19 pandemic and the process ofNATO membershipand for his positions against neighboring Russia.
Highest far-right score in Finland
Greeted with cries of “ Finland! Finland! “, Riikka Purra congratulated herself in front of her supporters of the “ best election result of the history of the nationalist party. The 45-year-old nationalist leader even offered herself the luxury of winning the largest number of votes for her name, with around 38,000 against 35,000 for the popular Sanna Marin. Installed for more than 20 years in Finnish political life, the far right has broken its record of 19.05% dating back to 2011, in the wake of the populist wave that has crossed Europe in recent years. “ We don’t have a far-right party in Finland “, However, assured Petteri Orpo to the foreign press, while an alliance with the nationalists is considered probable.
These legislative elections in the country of 5.5 million inhabitants coincide with the official entry of the country bordering Russia into NATO, expected in the coming days. The election does not change anything from the point of view of the military alliance: all the major parties, including the party of the Finns, are now in favor of it since the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.
(With AFP)