Iceland’s opposition Social Democrats take lead in snap election
The issues of immigration, energy policy and the economy played a central role in the campaign.
Iceland’s Social Democrats are on track to win the country’s snap election, according to partial results published Sunday, as voters appeared to reject incumbent parties.
The center-left Social Democratic Alliance had won 21 percent of the vote, securing 15 seats in the 63-seat parliament, according to an early tally reported by Iceland’s broadcaster RÚV.
It was followed by the conservative Independence Party, which won 19 percent and 14 seats, and the centrist Liberal Reform Party with 11 seats and 16 percent of votes, according to the report.
Icelanders headed to the polls on Saturday with the issues of immigration, energy policy and the economy playing a central role in the election, according to AP.
European Union membership also resurfaced in the campaign for the first time in more than a decade, Reuters reported, with public support for joining the bloc reaching 45 percent.
Iceland’s Prime Minister Bjarni Benediktsson dissolved the parliament in October and called the snap election, citing growing disagreements among the three governing parties — his Independence Party, the Progressive Party and the Left-Greens. All three parties in the outgoing government appeared to have lost votes.
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