Pro-euro candidate wins first round of Finnish vote
Pro-euro candidate Sauli Niinisto won the first round of Finland's presidential election on Sunday, signaling voters want to keep cooperating with the European Union despite their frustration over bailouts for debt-ridden member states.
The former finance minister got 37 percent of the vote. He faces a February 5 run-off with another pro-euro candidate, Pekka Haavisto of the Greens Party, who got about 19 percent. Anti-euro candidates Paavo Vayrynen and Timo Soini dropped out of the race after the final tally.
The presidential election comes 9 months after Soini's Finns Party made strong gains in a parliamentary election after a campaign that focused on criticizing European bailout plans. Yet Sunday's result showed most voters would rather be represented by a more internationalist leader.
Soini came in fourth place with 9 percent support. Analysts said his popularity may have been hit by racist comments by some party members as well as his own provocative style. Prospects of a Europe-wide recession are also making voters wary of choosing a president who does not support the government, they said.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/sns-rt-us-finlandtre80l0w0-20120122,0,4070080.story
= new reply since forum marked as read
