Finland: The Centre Party holds | The Economist

As expected, Finnish voters on Sunday turned out their country’s Conservative-led government and its pro-European prime minister, Alex Stubb. The opposition Centre Party came in a clear first, with 21% of the vote. But the verdict seemed more an expression of economic frustration and a rejection of the current government than an endorsement of a new one. Only the smallest of margins separated the runner-up parties: the Conservatives won 18%, the Finns Party 17.6%, and the Social Democrats 16.5%. Finns waited until the last minute to make up their minds. Less than a week before the election, more than 40% of voters were still undecided.

Finland: Opposition Centre Party seen winning election | AFP

Finland’s opposition Centre Party came out on top in Sunday’s general election, far ahead of the parties in Prime Minister Alexander Stubb’s left-right coalition, partial results showed. If the results were to be confirmed, Centre Party leader Juha Sipila, a 53-year-old IT millionaire and newcomer to politics, would become Finland’s next prime minister. More than a third of the electorate cast their ballots in advance voting and with most of those counted, the Centre Party was seen taking 47 of 200 seats in parliament, a projection by public radio and television YLE showed. The Social Democrats were seen taking 38 seats, Stubb’s conservative National Coalition Party 37 seats, and the rightwing eurosceptic Finns Party 33 seats.