Conservatives Lead in Norwegian Election

Conservative Prime Minister Kare Willoch’s three-party coalition surged ahead in Norway’s election vote count early today and appeared to have won a narrow victory over a socialist alliance of three parties.

With 95.5% of about 3 million ballots counted from Monday’s election, the National Election Center predicted that Willoch’s coalition would win 78 seats in the 157-seat Parliament to 77 for the leftists under Labor Party leader and former Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland, 46.

The other two seats were won by the anti-tax Progress Party, which generally votes with the Conservatives but is not a member of Willoch’s coalition.

Willoch’s Conservatives had 29.4% of the votes counted and the Labor Party 41.5%.

The Conservatives’ partners had 15.3%, with the Christian People’s Party getting 8.4% and the Center Party 6.9%.

For Labor’s allies, the anti-North Atlantic Treaty Organization Socialist Left received 5.4% and the Liberal Party 3.1%. The Progress Party had 3.7% and lost two of its four seats in Parliament. Minor parties shared the remaining votes.