Finnish elections

Parliamentary elections are 18 March. Unlike in the US where campaigns seem to go on forever, it's only within the last week or two that I've seen campaign signs. But, they are everywhere.

The Green Party had a glass booth downtown highlighting climate change in the arctic as their principal issue (see picture).

Unlike our dominant two parties in the US, there are a number of parties in Finland: Social Democrats, Communist, Senior Citizen, Swedish, Green, etc. I am told that even the two most extreme parties are pretty similar. No one wants to eliminate taxes to the point of spoiling the social services that the government offers, unlike the USA where some conservatives would likely rejoice the death of the Great Society. So, even with a larger number of parties, the divisiveness seen in the US isn't present. To maintain a majority, parties must work together in Parliament. What a concept!

The most attractive candidates (male and female) are the Green Party candidates, in general. Campaign photos are generally relaxed---ties for men are not common. And, candidates are not all old white men. It's a much more diverse look to the candidates as a whole.

Real-life photo opportunity I wish I had my camera ready for: A dog peeing on a campaign sign.

Links:

Wikipedia: Finnish political parties

Virtual Finland: Structure and development of political parties

Links to the web sites of Finnish political parties