According to the Finnish Constitution sovereign power in Finland belongs to the people, represented by Parliament convened in session. The Finnish Parliament is unicameral and comprises 200 representatives.
Members of Parliament are elected every fourth year. The election day is the third Sunday of April in the election year, unless Easter affects this schedule. Every Finnish citizen who has reached the age of 18 not later than on the day of the election is entitled to vote in parliamentary elections.
Duties of Parliament
The Parliament of Finland enacts laws, decides the State budget, supervises the activities of authorities subordinated to the Government, and adopts international agreements.
Parliament chooses Prime Minister who is officially appointed by the President of Republic. The Prime Minister chooses the other members of the Cabinet who are appointed by the President of Republic. The Cabinet shall enjoy the confidence of the parliament.
Electoral Districts
For the purpose of parliamentary elections the country has been divided into 13 electoral districts in accordance with the division into provinces. A number of representatives proportional to the number of Finnish citizens residing in the district six months prior to the elections is elected from each district. However, from the electoral district of Åland is always elected one representative.
Well before the elections, the Government decides on the division of parliamentary seats on the electoral districts on the basis of information in the Population Information System.
How do I vote?
You can vote on the election day at your polling station or in advance at any of the general polling stations in Finland or abroad. The actual election day will be Sunday, 2 April 2023. The advance voting period will be from 22 to 28 March 2023 in Finland and from 22 to 25 March 2022 abroad.
Why should I vote?
These elections are about choosing the parliament, that is responsible for law-making and electing the government.
We have often witnessed that individual votes can be decisive – in these elections, your vote can make all the difference!
Further information is available on the elections website of the Ministry of Justice at https://vaalit.fi/en/parliamentary-elections.
