Sanna Marin's Era as Finland's Prime Minister Comes to an End After Historic Election Loss
Finland's left-wing Prime Minister Sanna Marin conceded defeat on Sunday in the country's parliamentary election, marking a historic end to her era at the helm. The opposition right-wing National Coalition Party (NCP) claimed victory, winning 48 of the 200 seats in parliament. Marin's Social Democrats took 43 seats, narrowly behind the nationalist Finns Party with 46 seats.
NCP leader Petteri Orpo declared, "We got the biggest mandate," vowing to fix Finland and its economy. He emphasized the need for austerity policies to curb deficit spending, a stance shared by the NCP and the Finns Party. Orpo will get the first chance at forming a coalition to obtain a majority in parliament.
Marin conceded defeat in her own party's election, acknowledging that her government had "gained support" despite not winning the most seats. She expressed regret over what she called "harmful" immigration from outside the European Union, a key goal of the Finns Party.
The NCP and Finns Party have vowed to curb public spending and stop the rise in public debt, which has reached nearly 70% of GDP since Marin took office in 2019. Orpo accused Marin's government of eroding Finland's economic resilience at a time when Europe is facing an energy crisis driven by Russia's war in Ukraine.
Marin, 37, has been praised globally for her progressive stance as the world's youngest prime minister when she took office in 2019. However, domestically, she faced criticism over partying and public spending. Marin remains popular among many Finns, particularly young moderates, but antagonized some conservatives with lavish spending on pensions and education.
The Finns Party's main goal is to reduce immigration from developing countries outside the EU, a stance shared by the NCP. The outcome of the election has significant implications for Finland's future relations with Russia and its role in NATO.
Finland's left-wing Prime Minister Sanna Marin conceded defeat on Sunday in the country's parliamentary election, marking a historic end to her era at the helm. The opposition right-wing National Coalition Party (NCP) claimed victory, winning 48 of the 200 seats in parliament. Marin's Social Democrats took 43 seats, narrowly behind the nationalist Finns Party with 46 seats.
NCP leader Petteri Orpo declared, "We got the biggest mandate," vowing to fix Finland and its economy. He emphasized the need for austerity policies to curb deficit spending, a stance shared by the NCP and the Finns Party. Orpo will get the first chance at forming a coalition to obtain a majority in parliament.
Marin conceded defeat in her own party's election, acknowledging that her government had "gained support" despite not winning the most seats. She expressed regret over what she called "harmful" immigration from outside the European Union, a key goal of the Finns Party.
The NCP and Finns Party have vowed to curb public spending and stop the rise in public debt, which has reached nearly 70% of GDP since Marin took office in 2019. Orpo accused Marin's government of eroding Finland's economic resilience at a time when Europe is facing an energy crisis driven by Russia's war in Ukraine.
Marin, 37, has been praised globally for her progressive stance as the world's youngest prime minister when she took office in 2019. However, domestically, she faced criticism over partying and public spending. Marin remains popular among many Finns, particularly young moderates, but antagonized some conservatives with lavish spending on pensions and education.
The Finns Party's main goal is to reduce immigration from developing countries outside the EU, a stance shared by the NCP. The outcome of the election has significant implications for Finland's future relations with Russia and its role in NATO.