Iceland

Parliament

Political system: Parliamentary system
Structure of parliament: Unicameral
IPU membership: Yes

Election results

Data on parliamentary elections, including the background, candidates, voter turnout, results and the formation of the new legislature. By default the latest election results are displayed. Select a date to view results from previous elections.

Results

About the election: Snap elections in 2017, held only one year after the previous elections, returned another fragmented Parliament. Prime Minister Bjarni Benediktsson's Independence Party (IP) remained the largest party in the 63-member Parliament, taking 16 seats, down from 21. Its coalition partner, the Reform Party also lost seats, taking four, while its former coalition partner, Bright Future, failed to win parliamentary representation. The Left-Green Movement (LGM), led by Ms. Katrín Jakobsdóttir (LGM), remained the second largest party. Former Prime Minister David Gunnlaugsson returned to parliament under the banner of the Centre Party, instead of the Progressive Party (PP). Fewer women were elected in 2017: 24 women (38.10%), down from 30 (47.62%) in 2016.

After a few weeks of coalition talks with various partners, on 29 November, Ms. Katrín Jakobsdóttir (LGM) announced she would form a coalition government with the IP and the PP. Two LGM members did not support the coalition, meaning it controlled 33 seats in all. On 30 November, the new coalition government under Ms. Jakobsdóttir was sworn in. Mr. Benediktsson became the Finance Minister.

The 2017 snap elections were triggered by the collapse of the coalition government, when Bright Future left the coalition citing a breach of confidence, following a scandal involving the Prime Minister's father. On 18 September, President Gudni Johannesson accepted Prime Minister Benediktsson's request to dissolve Parliament, paving the way for snap elections in October. During the election campaign, the major parties focused on the economy, promising to increase public spending. However, they differed on the method. The LGM, which also campaigned on a platform of restoring trust in government, said it would raise taxes on the wealthy, real estate and the fishing industry, while the IP said it would borrow money from the banking sector to fund infrastructure projects.
Number of parties winning seats: 8
Percentage of parties winning seats: 72.7%
Percentage of seats won by largest party or coalition: 25.4%
Alternation of power after elections: Yes
Number of parties in government: 3
Names of parties in government: Left-Green Movement (LGM), Independence Party (IP), the Progressive Party (PP)

Parties or coalitions winning seats

Parties or coalitions winning seats
Political group	Total
Independence Party (IP)	16
Left - Green Movement (LGM)	11
Progressive Party (PP)	8
Social Democratic Alliance (SDA)	7
Centre Party (CP)	7
Pirate Party	6
Reform Party	4
People's Party	4

Members elected, by sex

Number of men elected: 39
Number of women elected: 24
Percentage of women elected: 38.1%
Women Directly Elected: 24
Sources: Parliament (31.10.2017, 03.11.2017, 30.11.2017, 15.12.2017)

Ministry of Justice (08.11.2017)

Statistics Iceland

OSCE/ODIHR Needs Assessment Mission Report 2018

Reuters

Iceland Review

Iceland Monitor

Aljazeera

New legislature

Total number of men after the election: 39
Total number of women after the election: 24
Percentage of women after the election: 38.1%
First-term parliamentarians: 19
Percentage of first-term parliamentarians: 30.2%
Date of the first session: 14 Dec 2017

First Speaker of the new legislature

Personal details for the first Speaker of the new legislature: Steingrímur J. Sigfusson (Male)
Date of birth: 1955
Political party: Left - Green Movement (LGM)
Date of election: 14 Dec 2017

Iceland

Parliament

Election results

Background

Candidates

Voter turnout

Results

Parties or coalitions winning seats

Members elected, by sex

New legislature

First Speaker of the new legislature

Historical data for IPU membership