Ahead of the September election, Norway’s Labour government enjoys a slim advantage in the polls. The focus has shifted to the present ruling party and its hold on power as voters get ready for a crucial national election in September. Norway’s Labour-led government is treading carefully even as it navigates global problems and keeps its economy comparatively robust. Support is holding, according to recent polls, but only just. The margin is slim, and the next few weeks have the potential to change the political landscape of the nation for years to come.
As Norway goes to the polls, the Labour Party is leading a close race
Norway’s ruling Labour Party government and its left-leaning allies are favourites to win next month’s parliamentary election, albeit with a reduced majority of seats in what is likely to be a narrow vote, an opinion poll showed on Wednesday. Labour Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere, who governs in a minority with support from smaller parties, hopes to secure a second four-year term in office.
To prevent the populist right-wing Progress Party or the Conservatives from taking power. In a surprise move, Stoere in February named former NATO boss and ex-prime minister Jens Stoltenberg as his minister of finance, bolstering Labour’s standing in the polls among voters concerned by the war in Ukraine and turmoil in global trade.
Ahead of Norway’s close election, the Labour-led bloc maintains a slim lead
Labour and smaller groups on the left look set to win 88 seats in the 169-seat assembly, down from 100 in 2021 but ahead of the 81 seats seen for the centre-right opposition, the poll by the Opinion agency for ABC Nyheter and Altinget showed. Labour’s support in the July 28 to August 3 poll stood at 26.7%, in line with the 26.3% it won in 2021 and ahead of the Progress Party.
Which seeks tax cuts and lower immigration, on 23.6%, and the centre-right Conservatives on 15.8%. Norway shares a nearly 200 km (120-mile) Arctic border with Russia, and the prime minister believes the war in Ukraine has made Norwegians concerned. Stoere told a roundtable with foreign correspondents in May,
“The impact of war being fought out there is making a deep impression on people.”
The opposition parties are growing more powerful as Norwegian politics heats up
Even though the Conservative Party is still Labour’s biggest rival, other parties are also gaining ground. For various reasons, smaller parties such as the right-wing Progress Party, the Socialist Left, and the Centre Party are all making slight advances. Because of this, coalition formation is likely to occur after the election, regardless of the winner.
The strength of each party is indicative of the fragmented nature of Norwegian politics as a whole. Although there isn’t a single dominant concern, many people are a little uncomfortable with the way things are going. Though not as strong as it formerly was, public trust in the government is still comparatively high. On the flip side, though, it is hard to trust the government, even with how global markets drop after Trump’s latest tariff move.
Topics expected to influence the September 8 election also include the economy, education, and healthcare, analysts have said. But unlike in some European countries where Moldova warns Russia may meddle in elections, none of the parties that are expected to win seats have sought the backing of U.S. President Donald Trump or his movement. The September election is about how Norwegians want to live in the upcoming ten years, not just party politics. Do they still have faith in the promises made by a government that has guided the world through inflation and the recovery from the pandemic?
GCN.com/Reuters