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Norway Politics 2009

Norway has a long tradition of holding democratic elections, and the conduct of the 14 September 2009 elections confirmed that Norwegian elections are characterized by political pluralism, respect for fundamental freedoms and rights, a high degree of public trust in the impartiality of the election administration, and the integrity of the process as a whole. The authorities displayed a particular responsiveness to remedy existing weaknesses in the electoral process and improve it further.

These elections took place in a competitive environment, with a broad and genuine choice among political alternatives available to voters. The campaign is unregulated and, therefore, did not have an official starting date; campaign activities began in July. They saw the incumbent governmental coalition defending its record on a wide range of issues. At the same time, much of the political debate revolved around possible coalitions in the future government. The main method for political parties to communicate with voters was through the broadcast media, including debates, interviews and roundtable discussion programs. ‘Social media’ (Facebook, Twitter, blogs, etc) were increasingly used by political parties to disseminate their message, targeting young voters in particular.

On September 14, 2009, the "Red-Green" coalition won reelection for four more years after winning 86 of the 169 seats in parliament. In the parliamentary election on 14 September 2009, the governing parties had their mandate renewed by a continued majority in the Storting (Parliament), and the Government could continue. Norway's Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg (Labor Party - AP) and his two coalition partners, the Socialist Left (SV) and Center Party (SP) held on to their parliamentary majority in nationwide elections September 14, winning 86 of 169 seats in Parliament.

Stoltenberg himself, as well as the Labor Party more broadly, came out strengthened by the relatively strong showing of AP compared to pre-election polls and to the party's 2005 numbers, and the weak showing of his far-left-leaning SV coalition partner headed by current finance minister Kristen Halvorsen. On the morning after, media focused on the tactical victory for PM Stoltenberg - who is being compared to great statesmen and Labor Party giants like Einar Gerhardsen and Gro Harlem Brundtland. This is the first majority government to win reelection in Norway since 1949. (The last minority government to do so was in 1993.)

The four main center right opposition parties couldn't muster a viable alternative government in 2009, and their infighting likely led to their defeat as a bloc. That being said, Erna Solberg's Conservative Party (Hoyre) came out much stronger than their 2005 numbers and pre-election polls, with the end result that they gained seats to win a total of 31 seats in the new parliament. Siv Jensen's controversial right-leaning Progress Party (FrP) did not do as well as they expected to do, but nevertheless pronounced great satisfaction at having produced their greatest election result ever, with a total of 40 seats (compared to 38 in the last parliament).

While Labor, FrP, and Hoyre scored impressive gains, the moderate center Liberal Party (Venstre) suffered an unexpected and almost total defeat, going from 10 to 2 seats. As results became clear on election night, Venstre's party leader Lars Sponheim announced he would resign as party leader at the party's next convention. In the final count, he did not even win his own seat. It was Sponheim who had made a major campaign issue out of refusing to contemplate cooperation with any government that included Siv Jensen's Progress Party (FrP). This infighting, while based on principled differences such as opposition to FrP's anti-immigration and weak environmental protention stand, appears to have turned off many potential Venstre voters.

The Stoltenberg government that took office in October 2005 and was reelected in 2009 continued the northern policy laid down by the Bondevik government in 2003. This "High North" strategy has remained one of the constant themes of this government and encompasses many of the government's highest priorities, including environmental protection, responsible development of energy resources, maintaining a security presence in the Arctic, and developing Norway's relations with Russia. In 2010, Norway concluded bilateral agreements with Russia resolving the two countries’ long-disputed maritime boundary in the Barents Sea and Arctic Ocean and facilitating travel for border residents. Upon ratification, the maritime boundary agreement entered into force in 2011.