Finnish PM concedes defeat as opposition wins polls

Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin conceded defeat after losing to the center-right opposition in national elections on Sunday, as the country is poised to join NATO.

Preliminary results published on Monday showed that Marin's center-left Social Democrats came in third place, behind the center-right National Coalition Party, or NCP, and the right-wing Finns Party.

With the votes counted, the Social Democrats garnered 19.9 percent of the support, trailing NCP's 20.8 percent and Finns Party's 20.1 percent.

"Congratulations to the winner of the elections, congratulations to the National Coalition Party, congratulations to the Finns Party. Democracy has spoken," Marin told supporters after the elections.

While her Social Democrats party finished only third, it won 43 seats in the parliament, compared to 40 in the 2019 elections when she became the then world's youngest prime minister at the age of 34 by a thin margin of victory.

NCP chairman Petteri Orpo, whose party won 48 seats on Sunday, said his party will be tasked to form a coalition government. "This was a great victory," he told supporters in Helsinki on Sunday night.

He said that the Finnish people want change and he will start open negotiations with all parties to form a new government.

The Finnish parliamentary election was held just three days after the Turkish parliament approved a bill that allows Finland to join NATO, becoming the last of the 30 NATO members to endorse the membership. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Finland will become the 31st member of the military alliance on Tuesday.

But this year's election was focused on the country's economy, which is expected to grow only 0.2 percent this year and 1.4 percent in 2024, according to the European Commission's forecast in January.

The right-wing parties have criticized Marin for a weak economy with rising living costs and an energy crisis in the country.

They also claimed that she was unfit for office by attacking her for a partying scandal last August which showed Marin dancing, singing and drinking at a private residence before visiting two bars. She was forced to apologize and take a drug test.

Orpo, whose previous career includes serving as Finland's deputy prime minister, finance minister, agriculture and forestry minister and interior minister, has pledged to tighten spending and halt the rise in public debt.

Marin, who headed a coalition government of five parties, has not ruled out joining the upcoming coalition government but has opposed to be in any coalition with the Finns Party which she claims to be "openly racist".

Riikka Purra, leader of the Finns Party, said the party's main goal was to reduce "harmful" immigration from developing countries outside the EU. The Finns Party shares NCP's views on economic austerity policy.

With the three main parties at odds with each other on several issues, smaller parties, such as the Center Party of Finland, the Greens and the Left Alliance, are now given the chance to join the coalition government.

Carl Bildt, a former Swedish prime minister, congratulated Orpo in a tweet on Sunday but said that "choices of coalition partner and coalition talks are however likely to take some time".

"After Sweden, Finland moves to the right," Ashok Swain, a professor of peace and conflict research at Uppsala University in Sweden, said in a tweet.

Agencies contributed to the story.