CNN
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Left-wing Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin admitted defeat in the Nordic country’s parliamentary elections on Sunday, while the right-wing opposition National Coalition Party (NCP) claimed victory in the election. ‘a hotly contested election.
The business-friendly PCN is expected to win 48 of the 200 seats in Parliament, narrowly edging out the Finnish Nationalist Party with 46 seats and Marin’s Social Democrats with 43 seats, according to Justice Department election data after the count. all ballots.
“We got the most important mandate,” PCN leader Petteri Orpo said in a speech to supporters, promising to “fix Finland” and its economy.
He will have the first chance to form a coalition to gain a majority in Parliament as Marin’s era as prime minister was expected to end.
“We gained support, we gained more seats (in parliament). This is a great achievement, even if we did not finish first today,” the Prime Minister said in a speech to party members.
Marin, 37, the world’s youngest prime minister when she took office in 2019, is seen by her fans around the world as a millennial role model for new progressive leaders, but at home she has been criticized for his party and his government’s public spending.
Although she remains very popular with many Finns, especially among young moderates, she has irked some conservatives with lavish spending on pensions and education that they view as not frugal enough.
The PCN has led the polls for almost two years, although its lead has faded in recent months. He promised to rein in spending and stop the rise in public debt, which has reached just over 70% of GDP since Marin took office in 2019.
Orpo accused Marin of eroding Finland’s economic resilience at a time when Europe’s energy crisis, sparked by Russia’s war in Ukraine, has hit the country hard and the cost of living has risen.
Orpo said he would negotiate with all groups to achieve a majority in parliament, while Marin said his Social Democrats could govern with the PCN but would not enter government with the Finns Party.
Marin called the Finns Party “openly racist” during a debate in January – an accusation the nationalist group rejected.
The Finns Party’s main goal is to reduce what leader Riikka Purra called “harmful” immigration from developing countries outside the European Union. It also calls for austerity policies to reduce deficit spending, a position it shares with the PCN.
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Who is Sanna Marin? (2019)
The most notable of Marin’s foreign policy actions was his push, alongside President Sauli Niinisto, for the country to make a decisive political shift by seeking membership in NATO following the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.
That process is now almost complete, and Helsinki is expected to join within days after all 30 members of the Western defense alliance approve membership.