True Finns
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| True Finns | |
|---|---|
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| Finnish name | Perussuomalaiset |
| Swedish name | Sannfinländarna |
| Leader | Timo Soini |
| Founded | 1995 |
| Headquarters | Mannerheimintie 40 B 56 FI-00100 HELSINKI |
| Ideology | Finnish nationalism, Right-wing populism1, Agrarianism2, National conservatism3, Euroscepticism |
| Political position | Right-wing4, Centre5 |
| International affiliation | None |
| European affiliation | None |
| European Parliament Group | Europe of Freedom and Democracy |
| Official colours | Yellow |
| Parliament: |  |
| European Parliament: |  |
| Website | |
| http://www.perussuomalaiset.fi/ | |
| Politics of Finland Political parties Elections |
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True Finns (Finnish: Perussuomalaiset, Swedish: Sannfinländarna) is a political party in Finland, founded in 1995 following the dissolution of the Finnish Rural Party.
The party is critical of the European Union, which it sees as a "capitalist project". The party advocates a large welfare state.6 The party has recently been popular among former voters of the leftist parties and less among the Centre Party voters.7 In the 2003 parliamentary elections, the party gained three seats. In the 2007 Parliamentary Election, the party more than doubled its share of the vote, gaining 2 further seats to give it a total of 5.
Timo Soini is the party's popular leader and was the True Finns candidate in the 2006 Presidential election. He finished fifth out of the eight candidates in the first round, with a vote share of 3.4%. Soini was elected to the European parliament in 2009.
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Election results
Presidential elections
| Year | Candidate | Votes | Share of votes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Ilkka Hakalehto | 31 405 | 1.0% |
| 2006 | Timo Soini | 103 368 | 3.4% |
Parliamentary elections
| Year | MPs | Votes | Share of votes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | 1 | 26 440 | 1.0% |
| 2003 | 3 | 43 816 | 1.6% |
| 2007 | 5 | 112 256 | 4.1% |
Local council elections
| Year | Councillors | Votes | Share of votes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 138 | 21 999 | 0.9% |
| 2000 | 109 | 14 712 | 0.7% |
| 2004 | 106 | 21 417 | 0.9% |
| 2008 | 442 | 137 446 | 5.4% |
European parliamentary elections
| Year | MEPs | Votes | Share of votes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 0 | 15 004 | 0.7% |
| 1999 | 0 | 14 712 | 0.8% |
| 2004 | 0 | 21 417 | 0.9% |
| 2009 | 1 | 162 571 | 9.8% |
Leaders
- Raimo Vistbacka (1995-1997)
- Timo Soini (1997-)
History
The founder of the Finnish Rural Party (Finnish: Suomen maaseudun puolue; SMP), the party's predecessor, was Veikko Vennamo, leader of a faction in the Agrarian League (which was renamed Centre Party in 1965). The relations of Veikko Vennamo and the Agrarian League's strong man Urho Kekkonen were icy at best, and after Kekkonen was elected president in 1956 Vennamo decided to start a party on his own.
The Finnish Rural Party started as a protest movement, with support from small farmers and the unemployed. The main carrying force was Vennamo, who was charismatic, a good orator and a skilled negotiator. The Rural Party won in its best showing 18 seats in the Finnish parliament (which has 200 seats) and sometimes even managed to join the cabinet. Veikko Vennamo's son, Pekka Vennamo, became the party leader when his father retired in the 1980s. Vennamo Junior had neither the charisma nor the oratorical skills of his father. Other parties noticed this, and the Rural Party was taken again into the cabinet. As a protest movement without a charismatic leader, burdened with ministers participating in unpopular coalitions, the party gradually lost political support.
Agricultural changes proved hard for small farmers, who sold their farms and moved to the cities. The Social Democratic Party was a more credible alternative for the unemployed. Finally, the declining support of the Rural Party forced Vennamo Junior to resign. Some of its members of parliament joined the Centre Party and others retired with Vennamo.
Policies
The party6
- Advocates a large welfare state.
- Advocates government-produced services and criticizes doctors who work in the private sector.
- Criticizes people who have called for tax cuts, which the party believes could lead to bad outcomes.
- Believes that big government and income transfers are necessary for democracy.
- Opposes cuts in public pensions.
- Opposes market thinking that is threatening the rural regions. Believes government should subsidize rural regions.
- Criticizes the EU and sees it as a threat to the welfare state. The party sees the EU as a "capitalist project", which is used to "fill big capital owners' pockets with money".
- Reduce the immigration to Finland from Non-European countries.
- Advocates non-aligned, non-allied foreign policy. Opposes NATO. Opposes EU military policies that would lead to arms race and would weaken the United Nations role.
See also: Politics of Finland
References
- ^ http://www.parties-and-elections.de/finland.html
- ^ http://www.parties-and-elections.de/finland.html
- ^ http://www.parties-and-elections.de/finland.html
- ^ http://www.parties-and-elections.de/finland.html
- ^ Ylen tutkimus: Perussuomalaiset ideologialtaan keskustalaisia
- ^ a b [1]
- ^ Party analysis - True Finns won the day. Statistics Finland
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