Norway’s Labour Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store declared victory in Monday’s legislative elections, fending off a challenge from the populis
In elections for the Storting, Norway's parliament, the center-left bloc led by Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre held off the populist right to win a second consecutive term. The race had been considered very close but Støre seemed to pull ahead just before the election.
Norway's left-wing bloc led by Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store won Monday's legislative elections, which also saw a record surge in support for the anti-immigration Progress Party. In power since 2021, Store is expected to continue to head a minority Labour government, backed up by the other four left-wing parties. The election campaign in the wealthy nation of 5.6 million people had centred largely on domestic issues but was also influenced by geopolitics, including US President Donald Trump's policies and the war in Ukraine. Norway's five-party left-wing bloc won a narrow majority of 87 of the 169 seats in parliament, compared to 82 for the right-wing bloc, results showed with almost all ballots counted.
Norway is a founding member of NATO. Former NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg has since returned to politics in Norway. Perhaps you recall Stoltenberg recently getting a phone call from Donald Trump about the Nobel Peace Prize. 😆
A big issue was the wealth tax – one of the reasons Norway is not run by oligarchs. Labour wants to modernize it but the Progress Party wants to abolish it.
POLITICO Europe adds...
Støre’s improvement in the polls this year is closely tied to the return to government of popular former NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, who became finance minister in February. Within days of his appointment, dubbed the “Stoltenback” effect, Labor surged 10 percentage points.
Since the articles above were written, the left bloc widened its margin by one. This table is from NRK – Norway's public broadcaster.
It shows the number of seats (mandater) won in this election and the changes since the previous election.
Venstresiden - 88 : Team Left 88 seats ✓
Red Party (Rødt) ... 09
Socialist Left Party (Sosialistisk Venstreparti) ... 09
Labour Party (Arbeiderpartiet) ... 53
Centre Party (Senterpartiet) ... 09
The Green Party (Miljøpartiet De Grønne) ... 08
Høyresiden - 81 : Team Right 81 seats
Christian Democratic Party (Kristelig Folkeparti) ... 07
Liberal Party (Venstre) ... 03
Conservative Party (Høyre) ... 24
Progress Party (Fremskrittspartiet) ... 47
So Norwegian voters reaffirmed their commitment to constitutional democracy. 🇳🇴
EXTRA: The Nobel Peace Prize committee is appointed by the Storting but current rules prohibit current members of the Storting from serving on the Nobel committee. The five committee members who will make the choice for 2025 are already in place.
