Finnish People First[1] (Finnish: Suomen Kansa Ensin, SKE[2]) was a nationalist political party in Finland. It was founded in 2018[3] and de-registered in 2023 after failing to win seats in two consecutive parliamentary elections.[4] In July 2023, the party filed for bankruptcy and announced its dissolution.[5]
Finnish People First Suomen Kansa Ensin | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Abbreviation | SKE |
| Chairperson | Riikka Salmi |
| Secretary | Ari Lindström |
| Vice chairperson | Kari Sunell |
| Founded | 2018 |
| Dissolved | 2023 |
| Split from | Suomi Ensin |
| Headquarters | Tampere, Finland |
| Ideology | Finnish nationalism Euroscepticism Anti-immigration Anti-Islamization |
| Political position | Far-right |
| Parliament of Finland | 0 / 200 |
| Website | |
| skepuolue | |
History edit
Finnish People First originated from the Suomi Ensin ("Finland First") movement that organized a protest camp in central Helsinki in the spring of 2017.[6][7] The movement was led by Marco de Wit,[6] a YouTuber from Tampere.[8][6] The movement splintered into numerous competing factions, one of which evolved into Finnish People First,[6] also led by de Wit.[9] It was registered as an association in November 2017.[10] The association had collected the required 5,000 supporter cards by October 2018, and was admitted to the party register in December that year.[6] Soon after, the party descended into internal strife. A party conference was convened to address the issue, but only resulted in furthering the divides. The conference re-elected Marco De Wit as the party chairman, but some members of the party contested the validity of the conference.[11] Another conference in November 2019 also brought up divisions within the party, when a group of members voted a new chair at a meeting, and after the meeting was partly evicted from the premises by security, the disputed new chair decided the meeting would continue at a neighbouring room with a large part of participants while another disputed chair decided to continue the meeting at the original premises with rest of the participants.[12]
Finnish People First took part in the 2019 parliamentary election. During the campaign the party displayed campaign ads that the police investigated for criminal content.[13] No candidates were elected.[14]
Ideology edit
Finnish People First was extreme nationalist and anti-immigration.[15][6] It opposed Finland's membership in the European Union and the Eurozone, and would return to its former currency, the Finnish markka.[16] The party opposed NATO and what it called "harmful immigration" and "Islamization".[6] The party has been described as far-right,[17] although the way it described its position on the left–right political spectrum was ambiguous.[16]
Election results edit
Parliament of Finland edit
| Election | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | Government |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 2,366 | 0.08 | 0 / 200
|
New | Extra-parliamentary |
| 2023 | 1,229 | 0.04 | 0 / 200
|
 0
|
Extra-parliamentary |
Municipal elections edit
| Election | Votes | % | Seats |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 197 | 0.0 | 0 |
See also edit
References edit
- ^ "Extra-parliamentary parties band together ahead of April elections". Yle News. 6 January 2019. Retrieved 21 March 2019.
- ^ "Friday's papers: Independence Day ball and demonstrations". Yle News. 7 December 2018. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
- ^ Tikkala, Hannu; Tolkki, Kristiina (3 April 2019). "'Hävittäjähankinnat peruttava, 1 200 euron perustulo kaikille, opintolainat nollattava' – tätä kaikkea pienpuolueet lupaavat äänestäjille". Yle Uutiset (in Finnish). Retrieved 8 May 2019.
- ^ "Yhdeksän puoluetta poistettu puoluerekisteristä". Vaalit.fi (in Finnish). Ministry of Justice. 19 April 2023. Retrieved 19 April 2023.
- ^ "Kansallismielinen Suomen Kansa Ensin jätti konkurssihakemuksen käräjäoikeuteen". yle.fi. YLE. 7 July 2023. Retrieved 7 July 2023.
- ^ a b c d e f g Paakkanen, Mikko (11 December 2018). "Suomeen rekisteröitiin uusi maahanmuuttovastainen puolue". Helsingin Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 11 December 2018.
- ^ "Suomeen syntyi uusi puolue – tunnetaan Rautatientorin tempauksesta". Helsingin Uutiset (in Finnish). 11 December 2018. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
- ^ Eklund, Ville (11 December 2018). "Uusi Suomen Kansa Ensin -puolue nousi puoluerekisteriin – 18 puolueesta ainoa, jolla ei ole ruotsinkielistä nimeä". MTV Uutiset (in Finnish). Retrieved 11 December 2018.
- ^ "Suomi ensin -liikkeen keulahahmo Marco de Wit aikoo rekisteröidä yhdistyksensä puolueeksi eduskuntavaaleihin". Helsingin Sanomat (in Finnish). 30 October 2018. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
- ^ "PRH Yhdistysnetti". Yhdistysrekisteri (in Finnish). Patentti- ja rekisterihallitus. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
- ^ Pekkonen, Sanna (20 January 2019). "Vasta perustetussa Suomen Kansa Ensin -puolueessa kytee jo erimielisyyksiä: Osa uskoo, ettei puolue edes pääse vaaleihin – 'Mikään ei voi estää meitä'". MTV Uutiset (in Finnish). Retrieved 28 April 2019.
- ^ "Vallankaappausyritys Suomen kansa ensin -puolueessa – puheenjohtajaksi halunnut heilui nuija kädessä kokouksessa". Turun Sanomat (in Finnish). 28 November 2019. Retrieved 29 November 2019.
- ^ "Poliisi epäilee rikosta Suomen kansa ensin -puolueen kampanjoinnissa – toinen epäillyistä puolueen puheenjohtaja Marco de Wit". Yle Uutiset (in Finnish). STT. 9 April 2019. Retrieved 28 April 2019.
- ^ "Party results". Information and Result Service. Ministry of Justice. 17 April 2019. Retrieved 18 April 2019.
- ^ Huusko, Markku (3 May 2019). "'Suomen pitää luopua eurosta ja ottaa käyttöön oma valuutta' - Vaalit lähestyvät, näin ehdokkaiden vastaukset vaihtelevat EU-vaalikoneessa". Talouselämä (in Finnish). Retrieved 6 May 2019.
- ^ a b "Kansallismielinen Suomen Kansa Ensin puoluerekisteriin". Ilta-Sanomat (in Finnish). STT. 11 December 2018. Retrieved 11 December 2018.
- ^ "Vasemmistoliiton Markus Mustajärvi puolustaa puheenvuoroaan äärioikeiston mielenosoittajille". Lapin Kansa (in Finnish). STT. 7 December 2018. Retrieved 24 June 2019.
External links edit
- Official website
(in Finnish) - Finnish People First on Twitter
