Iceland's Social Democrats win election, unseating ruling coalition

Iceland's Social Democratic Alliance wins snap election, unseating ruling coalition after 7 years, led by Kristrun Frostadottir.

Iceland's centre-left Social Democratic Alliance became the biggest party in a snap election that unseated the ruling coalition of the past seven years, the final count showed on Sunday (December 1, 2024).

The Social Democrats, led by Kristrun Frostadottir, gained 15 seats in the 63-seat parliament with 20.8% of votes, state broadcaster RUV reported.

Also read: Icelanders head to polls after government collapse

Frostadottir, 36, took over as party leader two years ago and has championed the Nordic welfare model, vowing to tackle a cost-of-living crisis sparked by high inflation and borrowing costs.

Opinion polls ahead of the election had forecast the three ruling coalition parties - the Independence Party, the Left-Green Movement and the Progressive Party - to be the biggest losers.

However, the Independence Party, led by Prime Minister Bjarni Benediktsson, came second with 19.4% of votes, gaining 14 seats after a late surge in support, while the Liberal Reform Party was third with 15.8% and 11 seats.

Parties require 32 seats for a majority in the Althingi parliament.