- The Finnish Presidential Elections candidates: Pekka Haavisto and Sauli Niinistö
Yesterday, January 22 was held in Finland the first round of the Finnish Presidential Elections.
The leading candidates in the first round, and therefore chosen for the second round, have been Sauli Niinistö of the Kokoomus Conservative Party with 37% of the votes, and the candidate of the Greens, Pekka Haavisto, with 18.8% of all votes.
Despite the big difference between the two candidates in the votes of this first round, it is expected that the final vote next February 5th will be an equal match. Historically, the second rounds of the Finnish elections have always been pretty roughly divided in half, 50% one candidate, 50% the other, despite large differences in votes in the early rounds.
For now, what is known and certain is that these elections break the trend of electing a social democrat President in Finland. During the past 30 years, from Mauno Koivisto’s times and Martti Ahtisaari’s times until Tarja Halonen’s Presidency, the Finnish president has been a member of the social democratic party. Now the question remains whether the upcoming February 5th the Finnish Presidency is for the conservatives or for the Green Party.
The Conservative candidate, Sauli Niinistö, is known for his commitment to European integration and support for the Euro, while the candidate of the Greens, Pekka Haavisto, emphasizes his commitment with the environment protection, human dignity and equality. Pekka Haavisto is the first Finnish presidential candidate to declare himself openly homosexual.
During the intermission before the second round of the elections, both candidates believe that the discussion will focus on foreign policy.
