Amid Russia threat, Finland votes for prez

Helsinki, January 28

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Finns headed to the polls to pick a new president on Sunday to lead the country in its new role within NATO after it broke with decades of non-alignment to join the Western defence alliance in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The Nordic country’s admission to NATO last year drew threats of “counter measures” from its much larger neighbour. Unlike in most European countries, the president of Finland holds executive power in formulating foreign and security policy, particularly when dealing with countries outside the European Union like the US, Russia and China.

The president also acts as the supreme commander of the Finnish military, a particularly important duty in Europe’s current security environment.

Some 4.5 million citizens are eligible to vote for Finland’s new head of state from an array of nine candidates — six men and three women. They are picking a successor to hugely popular President Sauli Niinisto, whose term expires in March.

No candidate is expected get more than 50 per cent of the vote in Sunday’s first round of voting, pushing the race into a runoff in February. — Agencies