Finland's Sanna Marin Loses Bid Reelection
TimeNov 25, 2022
The Facts
Finland's left-wing Prime Minister Sanna Marin conceded defeat in the nation's parliamentary election on Sunday as the opposition right-wing National Coalition Party (NCP) claimed victory in a tightly fought contest.
The NCP won 48 out of 200 parliamentary seats and 20.8% of the vote. While the right-wing populist Finns party took 46 seats and scored 20.1% of the vote, Marin's Social Democratic Party emerged as the third-largest party with 19.9% of the vote and 43 seats.
The Spin
Left narrative
Sanna Marin's defeat is the latest setback for the left amid a larger shift to conservative and nationalist parties across Europe. It also signals a power shift in Finland's political scene, as the nation is likely to get a new center-right government with an anti-immigration, anti-EU, and anti-climate action coalition partner. Europe must keep a close eye on Finland's far-right and try to understand why populists and the far-right are sweeping the elections.
Right narrative
Though she was applauded for her response to Russia's war against Ukraine and Finland's bid to join NATO, Marin was primarily responsible for eroding the country's economic resilience. The global progressive icon's attempt to keep her coalition together at the cost of economic growth led to a sharp rise in the country's public debt. Meanwhile, her determination to exercise her right to party with Finnish celebrities at the peak of the energy crisis eventually dashed her hopes of a second term as prime minister.
