Women power

Iceland has its youngest female prime minister ever

Kristrun Frostadottir speaks to her supporters at an election party.

(Bild: APA Pool/AFP/Halldor KOLBEINS)

The 36-year-old Social Democrat Kristrún Frostadóttir will be the new Prime Minister of Iceland. This was announced by the leader of the Social Democratic Alliance and the party leaders of her two future junior partners at the presentation of their coalition agreement in Reykjavik. 

The leader of the Liberal Reform Party, Thorgerdur Katrín Gunnarsdóttir, will become Foreign Minister. Inga Sæland from the People's Party takes over the Social Affairs and Housing portfolio. Frostadóttir is the youngest female head of government in the country's history, and the new government is the first to have more women than men in the cabinet.

Coalition formed
In future, Iceland will be governed by a coalition based in the political center. In the past seven years, three other parties had formed a government that straddled the center, ranging from the Left-Green Movement to the liberal-conservative Independence Party.

This constellation collapsed this fall due to disagreements on issues such as migration and energy, which led to a new election.

Frostadóttir's Social Democrats had become the strongest force in the election three weeks ago with 20.8 percent of the vote, making strong gains, as did the Liberal Reform Party and the People's Party. The three parties won a total of 36 of the 63 seats in the Icelandic parliament. The previous governing parties, on the other hand, suffered some heavy losses. The left-wing Greens were even kicked out of parliament.