Organisation
Contrary to many bigger parties in Finland who convene bi- or tri-annually, the Congress of the Swedish People's Party convenes every year (in June) to decide on party policies, and to elect a Chairman and a Central Board. The decisions are taken by the delegates of the congress, who come from some 150 local branches, representing the grassroots-movement nature of the party. The Congress and all proceedings are open also to non-delegates and the congress is often broadcast over the Internet.
The Party has four regional district organisations in Nyland, Helsingfors (Helsinki), Åboland and Ostrobothnia. The party has some 30 000 members, including the members of the associated Swedish Womans League and Swedish Youth organisations.
MULTICULTURAL FINLAND is an association within the party. Multicultural Finland works for promoting issues of interest to immigrants in the societal debate. Also, MCF aims to raise immigrants’ and refugees’ interest in Swedish-speaking Finland as an open, modern and active population group who can help and support other groups and minorities. MCF is also a forum for being active in Swedish in Finland.
Multicultural Finland was founded in 2001 on the initiative of Eva Biaudet, who at the time was Member of Parliament, and Byoma Tamrakar, who is chair of the association.
www.multiculturalfinland.com
Representation
Nine seats out of 200 in the Finnish Parliament.
MP's: Mr Thomas Blomqvist, Ms Christina Gestrin, Ms Anna-Maja Henriksson, Mr Lars Gästgivars, Ms Mikaela Nylander, Mr Mats Nylund, Ms Astrid Thors, Mr Stefan Wallin and Ms Ulla-Maj Wideroos.
The MP from the autonomous region of the Åland Islands, Ms Elisabeth Nauclér, is also part of The Swedish Parliamentary Group.
Government
The Swedish People's Party has participated in 47 out of 61 governments since Finnish independence in 1918.
After the parliamentary elections in March 2011 the Swedish People's Party has two seats in the Cabinet: The Party Chairman Mr Stefan Wallin is Minister of Defense, and Ms Anna-Maja Henriksson is Minister of Justice.
The Swedish People' Party in Parliamentary elections since 1975:
|
Year |
Percentage of votes |
Total votes |
Number of MP´s |
|
1975 |
4,7 |
128 211 |
9 |
|
1979 |
4,2 |
122 418 |
9 |
|
1983 |
4,6 |
137 423 |
10 |
|
1987 |
5,3 |
152 597 |
12 |
|
1991 |
5,5 |
149 476 |
11 |
|
1995 |
5,1 |
142 874 |
11 |
|
1999 |
5,1 |
137 330 |
11 |
|
2003 |
4,6 |
128 824 |
8 |
|
2007 |
4,6 |
126 384 |
9 |
International
The Swedish People's Party has long traditions in the international political arena and natural links to other liberal parties in the Nordic and European countries. The party is a member of Liberal International (LI) and the European Liberal Democrats Party (ELDR).
The party stresses the importance of preventive peace-making and respect for human rights. The party is a central player in Finnish politics concerning refugee and development matters.