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Finland Remains Without a Dominant Party
(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Three parties continue to share most of the public’s confidence in Finland, according to a poll by Taloustutkimus released by YLE Radio News. 22.5 per cent of respondents would vote for the National Rally (KOK) in the next general election, 21.6 per cent would back the Finnish Centre Party (KESK), and 21.4 per cent would support the Social Democratic Party (SDP).
The Green League (VIHR) is fourth with 9.7 per cent, followed by the Left Wing League (VAS) with 8.7 per cent. Support is lower for the True Finns (PERUSS), the Swedish People’s Party (RKP), and the Christian-Democrats (KD).
The KESK’s Matti Vanhanen has been Finland’s prime minister since June 2003, after the resignation of Anneli Jaatteenmaki.
Finnish voters renewed the Diet in March 2007. Final results placed the KESK in first place with 23.1 per cent of the vote and 51 seats, followed closely by the KOK with 22.3 per cent and 50 seats, and the SDP with 21.4 per cent and 45 seats.
In April 2007, Vanhanen formed a coalition government encompassing the KESK, the KOK, the RKP and the VIHR. The four political organizations hold 125 seats in the 200-member Diet. In the previous administration, Vanhanen worked exclusively with the SDP and RKP.
In May, KESK parliamentary leader Timo Kalli acknowledged in a televised interview that he failed to disclose a list of donors to his campaign because he knew he would not be penalized for it. Another 26 lawmakers admitted to have acted in the same fashion, prompting calls for new legislation on campaign financing. Vanhanen called the scandal a "crisis of legitimacy" and warned of the perils of losing the Finnish people’s trust in government.
On Jul. 17, Vanhanen called for the creation of a National Food Strategy, and said the program should be ready by 2020. The prime minister expressed concern over rising food prices all over the globe, adding, "The world population is growing, but the amount of land used for agricultural production is decreasing."
Polling Data
What party would you support in Finland’s next general election?
|
Jun. 2008 |
May 2008 |
Apr. 2008 |
|
|
National Rally (KOK) |
22.5% |
22.3% |
22.9% |
|
Finnish Centre Party (KESK) |
21.6% |
22.2% |
21.7% |
|
Social Democratic Party (SDP) |
21.4% |
22.4% |
21.8% |
|
Green League (VIHR) |
9.7% |
9.6% |
9.9% |
|
Left Wing League (VAS) |
8.7% |
8.3% |
8.3% |
|
True Finns (PERUSS) |
5.5% |
5.0% |
5.2% |
|
Swedish People’s Party (RKP) |
4.6% |
4.1% |
4.4% |
|
Christian-Democrats (KD) |
4.3% |
4.4% |
4.5% |
Source: Taloustutkimus / YLE Radio News
Methodology: Telephone interviews with 2,900 Finns, conducted in June 2008. Margin of error is 2 per cent.