Country: | Finland |
Flag Year: | state-1920 |
Type: | parliamentary |
Previous Election: | 1962 Finnish parliamentary election |
Previous Year: | 1962 |
Next Election: | 1970 Finnish parliamentary election |
Next Year: | 1970 |
Seats For Election: | All 200 seats in the Parliament of Finland |
Majority Seats: | 101 |
Election Date: | 20–21 March 1966 |
Image1: | Rafael-Paasio-1963 (cropped 2).jpg |
Leader1: | Rafael Paasio |
Party1: | Social Democratic Party of Finland |
Last Election1: | 19.50%, 38 seats |
Seats1: | 55 |
Popular Vote1: | 645,339 |
Percentage1: | 27.23% |
Seat Change1: | 17 |
Swing1: | 7.73pp |
Party2: | Centre Party (Finland) |
Last Election2: | 22.95%, 53 seats |
Seats2: | 49 |
Popular Vote2: | 503,047 |
Percentage2: | 21.23% |
Seat Change2: | 4 |
Swing2: | 1.72pp |
Image3: | Kulo (cropped).JPG |
Leader3: | Kusti Kulo |
Party3: | SKDL |
Last Election3: | 22.02%, 47 seats |
Seats3: | 41 |
Popular Vote3: | 502,374 |
Percentage3: | 21.20% |
Seat Change3: | 6 |
Swing3: | 0.82pp |
Image4: | Juha-Rihtniemi.jpg |
Leader4: | Juha Rihtniemi |
Party4: | National Coalition Party |
Last Election4: | 15.06%, 32 seats |
Seats4: | 26 |
Popular Vote4: | 326,928 |
Percentage4: | 13.79% |
Seat Change4: | 6 |
Swing4: | 1.27pp |
Image5: | Lars Erik Taxell.jpg |
Leader5: | Lars Erik Taxell |
Party5: | Swedish People's Party of Finland |
Last Election5: | 6.11%, 13 seats |
Seats5: | 11 |
Seat Change5: | 2 |
Popular Vote5: | 134,831 |
Percentage5: | 5.69% |
Swing5: | 0.42pp |
Image6: | Voorzitter Juva, Bestanddeelnr 928-1087 (cropped).jpg |
Leader6: | Mikko Juva |
Party6: | Liberal People's |
Last Election6: | 6.86%, 14 seats |
Seats6: | 9 |
Seat Change6: | 5 |
Popular Vote6: | 153,259 |
Percentage6: | 6.47% |
Swing6: | 0.39p |
Image7: | Aarre-Simonen.jpg |
Leader7: | Aarre Simonen |
Party7: | TPSL |
Last Election7: | 4.36%, 2 seats |
Seats7: | 7 |
Seat Change7: | 5 |
Popular Vote7: | 61,274 |
Percentage7: | 2.59% |
Swing7: | 1.77pp |
Image8: | Veikko Vennamo in 1967 (cropped).jpg |
Leader8: | Veikko Vennamo |
Party8: | Smallholders' Party |
Last Election8: | 2.16%, 0 seats |
Seats8: | 1 |
Seat Change8: | 1 |
Popular Vote8: | 24,351 |
Percentage8: | 1.03% |
Swing8: | 1.13pp |
Party9: | Åland Coalition |
Last Election9: | 0.32%, 1 seat |
Seats9: | 1 |
Popular Vote9: | 7,118 |
Percentage9: | 0.30% |
Swing9: | 0.02pp |
Before Election: | Johannes Virolainen |
Prime Minister | |
Before Party: | Centre Party (Finland) |
Posttitle: | Prime Minister after election |
After Election: | Rafael Paasio |
After Party: | Social Democratic Party of Finland |
Parliamentary elections were held in Finland on 20 and 21 March 1966.[1] The Social Democratic Party (SDP) overtook the Centre Party as the largest faction in Parliament. Rafael Paasio of the SDP subsequently became Prime Minister and formed a popular front government consisting of the SDP, the Centre Party, the People's Democratic League (SKDL), and the Social Democratic Union of Workers and Smallholders (TPSL) in May 1966.[2] [3]
Prior to the elections, Centre Party Prime Minister Johannes Virolainen had led a centre-right coalition government since September 1964. Meanwhile, Paasio had moved the SDP further to the left in order to attract back voters from the TPSL. Finnish society was undergoing a period of radical criticism of traditional values, such as Christianity, marriage, parents' authority over their children, teachers' authority over their students, patriotism, and civil servants' (including judges') authority over private citizens. The Social Democrats and the SKDL tapped into this discontent at the expense of the centre-right coalition. At the same time, leading Social Democrats, such as former Minister of Social Affairs and Minister of the Interior Väinö Leskinen, had promised to support President Kekkonen's foreign policy with regards to the Soviet Union, and his continuance as President.
Overall, the leftist coalition achieved a combined majority (51.0%) of the votes cast in the election.
Electoral district | Total seats | Seats won | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
SDP | Kesk | SKDL | Kok | RKP | LKP | TPSL | SPP | ÅS | |||
Åland | 1 | 1 | |||||||||
Central Finland | 11 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | |||||
Häme | 14 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | ||||
Helsinki | 21 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 | ||||
Kymi | 15 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | ||||
Lapland | 10 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 1 | ||||||
North Karelia | 9 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | ||||||
North Savo | 12 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 | |||||
Oulu | 18 | 2 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | |||||
Pirkanmaa | 12 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 3 | ||||||
Satakunta | 13 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | |||||
South Savo | 10 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |||||
Uusima | 18 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 1 | |||
Vaasa | 20 | 3 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 4 | |||||
Varsinais-Suomi | 16 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |||
Total | 200 | 55 | 49 | 41 | 26 | 11 | 9 | 7 | 1 | 1 | |
Source: Statistics Finland[4] |