Finland goes to the polls
By Jonathan Powell in London | chinadaily.com.cn | Updated: 2024-01-29 00:04
Voters in Finland went to the polls on Sunday to commence the process of electing a new head of state, amid unprecedented tension with neighboring country Russia.
Nine candidates, including former conservative prime minister Alexander Stubb and ex-foreign minister Pekka Haavisto of the Green party, who is running as an independent, are vying to replace incumbent President Sauli Niinisto, 75, who is mandated to step down after serving two six-year terms.
The polls opened at 9 am local time, and were due to close at 8 pm.
Approximately 4.5 million eligible citizens have the opportunity to cast their votes, but with none of the contenders expected to secure an outright majority, a runoff between the top two candidates is likely to be held in two weeks.
Based on recent polls, it appears that Stubb, 55, and Haavisto, 65, are the frontrunners in the initial round of voting, but neither are expected to secure more than 50 percent of the vote. Some experts cited in media coverage believe Jussi Halla-aho, a candidate from the far-right populist Finns Party, could make it to the second round.
A recent poll from public broadcaster Yle gave Stubb a first-round lead with 27 percent of the vote and placed Haavisto second on 23 percent and Halla-aho on 18 percent. Unless a candidate receives more than 50 percent, a second voting round will be held on Feb 11.
In contrast to many European countries, the president of Finland possesses executive power in shaping foreign and security policy.
This means security issues, NATO and Russia have been the dominant themes of the Finnish election campaign, along with Finland's significant contributions of military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine. Additionally, the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict has emerged as a significant topic in the election race.
Finland and Russia share a 1,340-kilometer border. In April 2023, following the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict in 2022, Finland made the decision to abandon its longstanding military non-alignment and join the western military alliance NATO, leading to warnings from Russia of potential "countermeasures".
After this, Finland experienced an influx of migrants entering through its eastern border without visas, leading Helsinki to assert that Moscow was orchestrating a hybrid attack to destabilize the country. In response, Finland made the decision to close its eastern border in November.
Hanna Wass, vice-dean of the faculty of social science at the University of Helsinki, told AFP that all of the presidential candidates advocate for Finland's independence and embrace its recent inclusion as a NATO member. "They all seem to have a strong idea emphasizing self-sufficiency, in that in the future Finland should be in charge of its defense independently and also be an active contributor in building a shared European defense and Nordic cooperation," Wass said.
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