List Of Political Parties In Finland

A party is defined as a political association whose existence is recorded in the Ministry of Justice’s party register.

Finland has a multi-party system. Coalition governments which comprise a majority of seats in the Parliament of Finland are the norm. Those parties which are not in government are called the opposition. Due to the lack of an electoral threshold, many parties are usually represented in Parliament. As a result, it is all but impossible for one party to win a majority. Additionally, the socialist and non-socialist blocs usually cannot win enough seats between them to form a governing coalition on their own. Most Finnish governments, particularly since World War II, have thus been grand coalitions comprising parties stretching across the political spectrum.

Parties work in parliamentary groups (eduskuntaryhmät), usually voting with party discipline, which is however not absolute.

Parties are composed of local chapters based in municipalities. In municipalities, which are fundamental administrative units of the country, parties hold seats in the municipal councils, but often have to compete for them with local non-party groups.

Finnish law states that a political association which fulfills certain conditions is eligible to become a political party free of charge. Among these conditions are:

• that the primary purpose of the association is to affect governmental affairs,
• that it has received at least 5,000 votes in any parliamentary, municipal, or European Parliament election,
• that the association's rules secure the following of democratic principles in its decision making and activities,
• and that it has a general program based on these rules which expresses the association's principles and goals regarding its actions in governmental affairs.

A registered party may nominate candidates in any national and local elections, and a party that is represented in parliament is entitled to a government subsidy relative to its number of seats. To qualify as a registered party, an association must have bylaws guaranteeing democratic internal organization and must be able to present 5,000 signatures from supporters who are eligible to vote. A party that fails to win a single seat in two consecutive parliamentary elections is stricken from the register but may apply again. (In contrast, a voluntary association has a requirement of 20,000 supporters and is not eligible for party subsidy).

Registered

Those parties that have received neither a seat in the Parliament of Finland nor in the European Parliament, but which are registered political parties, are listed below.

De-registered

Parliamentary historical parties

Extra-parliamentary historical parties

 

• Swedish party [fi] (Ruotsalainen puolue) 1870–1906
• Liberal party [fi] (Liberaalinen puolue) 1880–1885
• Finnish Active Resistance Party [fi] (Suomen aktiivinen vastustuspuolue) 1904–1908
• National Workers' Party (Kansallinen Työväenpuolue) 1917–?
• Socialist Party of Work [fi] (Sosialistinen Työpuolue) 1917–1919
• Peasant People's Party [fi] (Talonpoikaiskansan puolue) 1924–1933
• Farmers' Party [fi] (Maanviljelijäin Puolue) 1927–1929
• United Front (Yhteisrintama) 193?–1940
• New Finnish Party (Uusi Suomalainen Puolue) 1932–1945
• Finnish Socialist Party (Suomalaissosialistinen Puolue) 1932–1937
• Patriotic People's Party (Isänmaallinen Kansanpuolue) 1932–1933
• Finnish People's Organisation (Suomen Kansan Järjestö) 1933–1936
• Finnish-Socialist Workers' Party (Suomalaissosialistinen Työväen Puolue) 1934–1944
• Finnish Labor Front (Suomen Työrintama) 1936–1939
• Party of Finnish National Work (Suomalais-Kansallisen Työn Puolue) 1939–?
• Finnish National Socialist Labor Organisation (Suomen Kansallissosialistinen Työväenpuolue) 1940–1943
• Neo-Socialist Party (Uus-sosialistinen puolue) 1940–1945
• Organisation of National Socialists (Kansallissosialistien Järjestö) 1940–1944
• National Socialists of Finland (Suomen Kansallissosialistit) 1941–1944
• Radical People's Party (Radikaalinen Kansanpuolue) 1944–1951
• Independent Middle Class [fi] (Itsenäinen keskiluokka) 1949–1951
• Finnish People's Party (Suomalainen kansanpuolue) 1950s
• Independence Party (Itsenäisyyspuolue) 1960s
• Party Organisation of Finnish Entrepreneurs [fi] (Suomen Yksityisyrittäjäin Puoluejärjestö) 1972–1979
• Socialist Workers' Party (Sosialistinen Työväenpuolue) 1973–1990
• Pensioners' Party of Finland [fi] (Suomen Eläkeläisten Puolue) 1985–1999
• Joint Responsibility Party [fi] (Yhteisvastuu puolue) 1987–2007
• Senior Citizens' Party of Finland [fi] (Suomen Senioripuolue) 1990–2014
• Women's Party [fi] (Naisten puolue) 1990–1995
• Party of Humanity [fi] (Ihmisyydenpuolue) 1991–1995
• Finnish People's Blue-whites (Suomen Kansan Sinivalkoiset, SKS) 1993–2010
• Patriotic People's Movement (Isänmaallinen kansanliike) 1993–2010
• Natural Law Party [fi] (Luonnonlain puolue) 1994–2001
• Workers' Party of Finland (Suomen Työväenpuolue) 1999–2018
• Forces for Change in Finland (Muutosvoimat Suomi) 2002–2007
• For the Poor (Köyhien Asialla) 2002–2015
• Blue and White Front (Sinivalkoinen Rintama) 2009–2015
• Citizens' Party (Finland) (Kansalaispuolue) 2016–2022
• Finnish Reform Movement (Korjausliike) 2017–2023
• Seven Star Movement (Seitsemän tähden liike) 2017–2023
• Finnish People First (Suomen Kansa Ensin) 2018–2023

• Parliament of Finland
• Government of Finland
• President of Finland
• Elections in Finland
• Politics of Finland
• List of political parties in Åland
• List of ruling political parties by country