By Louise Rasmussen, Isabelle Yr Carlsson and Jacob Gronholt-Pedersen
COPENHAGEN (Reuters) – Iceland is holding a snap election on Saturday where voters are likely to topple the ruling coalition in a bid to avert a cost-of-living crisis, although an expected heavy snowstorm could delay the counting of ballots.
The North Atlantic island nation, home to 384,000 people, has enjoyed relative political stability since 2017 and ranks among the wealthiest countries in Europe per capita, supported by tourism, fishing and cheap geothermal and hydroelectric-powered aluminum production.
Trusted news and daily delights, straight to your inbox
See for yourself — Yodel is your source for daily news, entertainment and feel-good stories.
However, inflation and borrowing costs near their highest level since the 2008 financial crisis have helped drive the economic slowdown, putting the mounting hardship at the forefront of voters’ concerns.
A series of volcanic eruptions near the capital Reykjavik, displacing thousands of people and costing infrastructure repairs, have exacerbated tourism problems.
Polls open at 09:00 GMT on Saturday and close at 22:00 GMT, with the final result expected on Sunday morning.
However, a heavy snowstorm is forecast to hit the eastern part of the country on Saturday, which could delay the vote count, and authorities have encouraged voters to vote early.
Polls show that the ruling coalition of the Left-Green Movement, the conservative Independence Party and the center-right Progressive Party, which has been in power for the past seven years, is likely to be ousted.
“We’ve had the same coalition for seven years, and now there seems to be a desire for new people in the government,” said Stefania Oskarsdottir, a political scientist at the University of Iceland.
Katrin Jakobsdottir of the Left-Green Movement resigned as prime minister in April to run for the presidency, a bid she lost. Her replacement, Bjarni Benediktsson of the Independence Party, dissolved parliament in October and called an election after escalating coalition disagreements and public discontent over migration and energy and housing issues.
Iceland’s population has grown by 20% in the past decade, the most significant increase among OECD countries, fueled by high immigration rates, which puts additional pressure on housing and healthcare.
While inflation and interest rates have recently started to decline, the cost of living crisis has brought the issue of EU membership back into the electoral debate. Polls show that the pro-EU Social Democrats and the Liberal Reform Party would together garner 40% of the vote.
The center-left Social Democratic Alliance, last in government between 2009 and 2013, will get just over 20% of the vote, followed by the center-right Liberal Reform Party.
“The biggest issue right now is the cost of living,” Social Democrat leader Kristrun Frostadottir said in an interview with Reuters.
The 36-year-old economist, who took over as party leader two years ago, is a supporter of the Nordic welfare model and the favorite to become the new prime minister.
(Reporting by Louise Breusch Rasmussen Editing by William Maclean)
