Norwegian Labour Party Loses Regional Elections for the First Time in a Century

In the regional elections in Norway, the leading Labour Party secured second place, conceding the top spot to the Conservatives. This marks a historic moment as left-centrists fail to clinch the first position in nationwide voting for the first time since 1924, as reported by Reuters.

Official data reveals that, with 60% of the ballots counted, the Labour Party received 21.8% of the votes, a decrease compared to their 24.8% in 2019. In contrast, the Conservative Party secured 25.8% of the votes, reflecting an increase from the 20.1% they received four years ago.

Despite this significant setback for the Labour Party, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre has expressed his intention to continue leading a minority coalition government, regardless of the outcomes of the regional elections, which do not impact the composition of the parliament.

The sharp rise in consumer prices, including a 9% increase in food prices over the last 12 months, coupled with rising interest rates, has placed a heavy burden on households and forced the government to cut public expenditures due to concerns about inflation.

The Labour Party and the rural-focused Centre Party, which have been in government since 2021 following a decisive victory by left-wing parties, plan to hold parliamentary elections in Norway in 2025. If the 2025 election results resemble these, the left-centrist coalition could lose its majority, potentially paving the way for former Prime Minister Erna Solberg of the Conservative Party, who led Norway from 2013 to 2021, to return to power.

It's worth noting that earlier, the Norwegian government agreed to transfer Iris-T anti-aircraft missiles to Ukraine, along with the equipment necessary for demining Ukrainian territories. The Iris-T anti-aircraft missiles will be deployed on ground launch platforms provided by Sweden. The missile delivery is part of the 5-year "Nansen" program worth 75 billion Norwegian kroner. In early 2023, the Norwegian government accelerated the program's funding by 2.5 billion Norwegian kroner, increasing overall support for Ukraine to 10 billion Norwegian kroner. Additionally, Norway has confirmed its intent to provide F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine, with the exact number of fighter jets yet to be specified, though it is known that two fighter jets will be provided for training purposes.