Women Take Top 2 Offices in Finland
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HELSINKI, Finland — Finland is set to become the first country in Europe to have women serving as prime minister and president after three political parties agreed Monday to form a center-left government led by Anneli Jaatteenmaki.
Nearly a month after elections, the leaders of Jaatteenmaki’s Center Party, the former ruling Social Democrats and the Swedish People’s Party said they formed a coalition to govern this nation of 5.2 million people.
The Center Party won 55 posts in the 200-seat parliament. The Social Democrats, led by outgoing Prime Minister Paavo Lipponen, won 53 seats, while the Swedish People’s Party gained eight.
The remaining 84 seats are held by several smaller political parties.
The inauguration of Jaatteenmaki, 48, will make Finland the only country in Europe with women serving as prime minister and president. Tarja Halonen was sworn in as the country’s first female president in March 2000.
The prime minister bears most responsibility for running the government in Finland, with the president playing a far smaller role.
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