Election in Iceland: Government coalition probably holds a majority

The left-right coalition of Iceland’s Prime Minister Jakobsdóttir could preside over another term. First partial results indicate a renewed majority of the alliance in the parliamentary elections.

In the parliamentary elections in Iceland, despite losses for Prime Minister Katrín Jakobsdóttir’s party, a majority for the previous governing coalition is emerging.

First partial results from the individual Icelandic regions indicated that Jakobsdóttir’s left-green movement lost several percentage points, while the smaller of its two allies, the peasant-liberal Progress Party, could gain. The strongest force is likely to be the conservative independence party of finance minister and ex-head of government Bjarni Benediktsson, which is also part of the coalition.

Coalition across the political center

The Icelandic parliament Althing – one of the oldest parliaments in the world – has 63 seats. 32 are therefore necessary for a majority. A final result of the election should not be known until Sunday morning.

Iceland, with around 360,000 inhabitants, has been ruled by Jakobsdóttir for four years. After the last parliamentary election in 2017, the head of the Left-Green formed an unusual coalition across the political center with the Independence Party and the Progress Party. Polls had previously indicated that it could be a tight spot with a renewed majority for these three parties.