Icelandic PM disbands coalition government—elections in November

Icelandic Prime minister and head of the ruling Independence Party, Bjarni Benediktsson called a surprise press conference Sunday where he announced that he was disbanding the nation’s coalition government and calling for elections by the end of November.

The coalition government of the Independence Party, the Progressive Party, and the Left-Green Movement has been in power together since 2017.

Benediktsson claimed that growing tensions, as well as disputes between the ruling parties on certain key issues had forced his hand. He claimed that it was especially on immigration, fish farming and energy issues where the ruling parties were misaligned.

“The issues of asylum seekers, securing borders, and increasing efficiency are examples of topics that were less discussed in the last elections but need to be addressed now,” Benediktsson said at the press conference.

The coalition government has been increasingly unpopular and in the latest poll conducted by pollster Prósent, Iceland’s ruling coalition parties collectively garnered just 20% of the vote, with the Independence Party received 12%, the Progressive Party 5%, and the Left-Green Movement 3%.

Of the opposition, the Social Democratic Alliance leads with 26%, while the Center Party follows with 18%. Both the Reform Party and the People’s Party  registered 11%, and the Pirate Party polled at 9%. The Socialist Party measured at 4%.