1927 Finnish parliamentary election

1927 Finnish parliamentary election

←  1924 1–2 July 1927 1929  →
All 200 seats in the Parliament of Finland 101 seats needed for a majority
First party Second party Third party   Leader Matti Paasivuori Pekka Heikkinen Kyösti Haataja Party SDP Agrarian National Coalition Last election 29.02%, 60 seats 20.25%, 44 seats 18.99%, 38 seats Seats won 60 52 34 Seat change 8 4 Popular vote 257,572 205,313 161,450 Percentage 28.30% 22.56% 17.74% Swing 0.72pp 2.31pp 1.25pp   Fourth party Fifth party Sixth party   Leader Eric von Rettig Oskari Mantere Party RKP STPV National Progressive Last election 12.03%, 23 seats 10.45%, 18 seats 9.09%, 17 seats Seats won 24 20 10 Seat change 1 2 7 Popular vote 111,005 109,939 61,613 Percentage 12.20% 12.08% 6.77% Swing 0.17pp 1.63pp 2.32pp
Prime Minister before election Väinö Tanner SDP Prime Minister after election Juho Sunila Agrarian

Parliamentary elections were held in Finland on 1 and 2 July 1927. ^[1] Although the Social Democratic Party remained the largest in Parliament with 60 of the 200 seats, Juho Sunila of the Agrarian League formed an Agrarian minority government in December 1927. It remained intact until December 1928. Voter turnout was 55.8%. ^[2]

Background

Finland was governed during the 1927 election by a Social Democratic minority government led by Väinö Tanner. President Lauri Kristian Relander, an Agrarian, had supported the establishment of that minority government, after the Agrarian Prime Minister Kyösti Kallio's first government had been defeated in a vote of confidence in November 1926. He had advised Tanner to prepare a liberal and moderate government programme, which the Agrarians and Progressives could support. In April 1927 President Relander caught a cold which developed into a life-threatening pneumonia. He had to go on sick leave, and Tanner became the Acting President. He even received the centre-right Civil Guards' (Suojeluskunnat in Finnish; a voluntary Finnish men's paramilitary defence organization) salute on the Defence Forces' Flag Day (then held on 16 May). The bourgeois (non-socialist) parties tried to get back into power by persuading enough Finnish voters to reject the Social Democratic minority government. ^{[3] [4]}

Results

Party		Votes	%	Seats	+/–
	Social Democratic Party	257,572	28.30	60	0
	Agrarian League	205,313	22.56	52	+8
	National Coalition Party	161,450	17.74	34	–4
	Swedish People's Party	111,005	12.20	24	+1
	Electoral Organisation of Socialist Workers and Smallholders	109,939	12.08	20	+2
	National Progressive Party	61,613	6.77	10	–7
	Peasants' List	1,341	0.15	0	0
	Farmers' Party	784	0.09	0	New
	Others	1,174	0.13	0	–
Total		910,191	100.00	200	0
Valid votes		910,191	99.54
Invalid/blank votes		4,180	0.46
Total votes		914,371	100.00
Registered voters/turnout		1,719,567	53.17
Source: Nohlen & Stöver. [2] Tilastokeskus. [5] Lackman [6]

References

1. Dieter Nohlen & Philip Stöver (2010) Elections in Europe: A data handbook, p606 ISBN   978-3-8329-5609-7
2. Nohlen & Stöver, p614
3. Seppo Zetterberg et al., eds., A Small Giant of the Finnish History / Suomen historian pikkujättiläinen, Helsinki: WSOY, 2003
4. Sakari Virkkunen, Finland's Presidents I / Suomen presidentit I, Helsinki: WSOY, 1994
5. Tilastokeskus 2004
6. Matti Lackman: Taistelu talonpojasta (Pohjoinen 1985), p133