Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...

Finns Party The Finns Party, formerly known as the True Finns ( fi, Perussuomalaiset, PS, sv, Sannfinländarna, Sannf.), is a right-wing populist political party in Finland. It was founded in 1995 following the dissolution of the Finnish Rural Party. The ...

Jussi Halla-aho Jussi Kristian Halla-aho (born 27 April 1971) is a Finnish politician who has served as a member of the Parliament of Finland from 2011 to 2014 and again since 2019, and as the leader of the Finns Party from 10 June 2017 A new name for the party was announced on 19 June. The association of this name was officially registered on 3 July 2017. The party was chaired by

Sampo Terho In Finnish mythology, the ''Sampo'' () is a magical device or object described in many different ways that was constructed by the blacksmith Ilmarinen and that brought riches and good fortune to its holder, akin to the horn of plenty (cornucop ...

, the Minister for European Affairs, Culture and Sport, until June 2019. It also includes all the other cabinet ministers who were previously members of the Finns Party:

Timo Soini Timo Juhani Soini (born 30 May 1962) is a Finnish politician who is the co-founder and former leader of the Finns Party. He served as Deputy Prime Minister of Finland from 2015 to 2017 and Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2015 to 2019. He was e ...

,

Jussi Niinistö Jussi Niinistö (born 27 October 1970 in Helsinki) is a Finnish politician and a former Minister of Defence. Since 2011, he has been a member of Finnish Parliament, representing the Finns Party 2011–2017 and Blue Reform since 2017. By occupati ...

, Jari Lindström and

Pirkko Mattila Pirkko Anneli Mattila is a Finnish politician and a former Member of the Finnish Parliament, representing the Blue Reform party at the end of her tenure. She was first elected MP in the 2011 general election. Mattila replaced Hanna Mäntylä as ...

. It was one of the three parties that made up the

Sipilä Cabinet The cabinet of Juha Sipilä was the 74th government of Finland, from 2015 to 2019. It was formed following the parliamentary election of 2015 and formally appointed by President Sauli Niinistö on 29 May 2015. From June 2017, the cabinet consis ...

until its resignation on 8 March 2019. It lost all seats in the 2019 election. In April 2022, it changed its name to the Finnish Reform Movement.

History

Finns Party

The Blue Reform originates from the

Finns Party The Finns Party, formerly known as the True Finns ( fi, Perussuomalaiset, PS, sv, Sannfinländarna, Sannf.), is a right-wing populist political party in Finland. It was founded in 1995 following the dissolution of the Finnish Rural Party. The ...

, founded by

Timo Soini Timo Juhani Soini (born 30 May 1962) is a Finnish politician who is the co-founder and former leader of the Finns Party. He served as Deputy Prime Minister of Finland from 2015 to 2017 and Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2015 to 2019. He was e ...

,

Raimo Vistbacka Raimo Viljam Vistbacka (born 19 October 1945 in Kauhava) is a Finnish politician and former member of the Finnish Parliament. Vistbacka has a master's degree in law (''varatuomari'') and he was the rural police chief (''nimismies'') in Alajärvi in ...

, Urpo Leppänen and Kari Bärlund in 1995. It took some time before the Finns Party gained ground in Finnish elections and the party's sole MP until 2003 was Vistbacka. In 2003, the party won three seats: besides Vistbacka, Soini and

Tony Halme Tony Christian Halme (January 6, 1963 – January 8, 2010) was a Finnish politician, athlete, author, actor, and singer. He was a member of the Finnish Parliament from 2003 to 2007, representing the True Finns party as an independent politician ...

were elected. Soini had taken over as the chairman in 1997 and remained in the position for twenty years until 2017. The party slowly gained ground, but ultimately saw exceptional rise in 2011 election, when the party gained 39 seats, making them the third largest party in the parliament and the leading opposition party. In the 2015 election, the Finns Party rose to be the second biggest party in the parliament with 38 seats. The Finns Party subsequently entered into a coalition government with the Centre Party and the

National Coalition Party sv, Samlingspartiet , leader1_title = Chairman , leader1_name = Petteri Orpo , leader2_title = Deputy chairs , leader2_name = Antti HäkkänenElina ValtonenAnna-Kaisa Ikonen , merger = Finnish Party, Young Finn ...

, led by Prime Minister

Juha Sipilä Juha Petri Sipilä (; born 25 April 1961) is a Finnish politician who served as Prime Minister of Finland from 2015 to 2019. A relative newcomer to politics, he has a successful background in business. He was the leader of the Centre Party fr ...

. In March 2017, Soini announced that he would step down as party chairman in the next party congress. In June 2017,

Jussi Halla-aho Jussi Kristian Halla-aho (born 27 April 1971) is a Finnish politician who has served as a member of the Parliament of Finland from 2011 to 2014 and again since 2019, and as the leader of the Finns Party from 10 June 2017Sampo Terho In Finnish mythology, the ''Sampo'' () is a magical device or object described in many different ways that was constructed by the blacksmith Ilmarinen and that brought riches and good fortune to its holder, akin to the horn of plenty (cornucop ...

faced off in the

leadership election A leadership election is a political contest held in various countries by which the members of a political party determine who will be the leader of their party. Generally, any political party can determine its own rules governing how and when a l ...

, in which Halla-aho received 949 votes against Terho's 646 votes and thus succeeded Soini as party chairman. Sipilä and Finance Minister

Petteri Orpo Antti Petteri Orpo (born 3 November 1969) is a Finnish politician serving as the leader of the National Coalition Party since 2016. He has previously served as Deputy Prime Minister of Finland from 2017 to 2019, Minister of Finance from 2016 to 2 ...

soon announced that they would not continue their coalition with the Finns Party if it was led by Halla-aho. On 13 June 2017, 20 members of the

Finns Party The Finns Party, formerly known as the True Finns ( fi, Perussuomalaiset, PS, sv, Sannfinländarna, Sannf.), is a right-wing populist political party in Finland. It was founded in 1995 following the dissolution of the Finnish Rural Party. The ...

, including Soini and Terho, left its

parliamentary group A parliamentary group, parliamentary party, or parliamentary caucus is a group consisting of some members of the same political party or electoral fusion of parties in a legislative assembly such as a parliament or a city council. Parliamenta ...

to form the New Alternative ( fi, Uusi vaihtoehto (uv), sv, Nytt alternativ (na))

parliamentary group A parliamentary group, parliamentary party, or parliamentary caucus is a group consisting of some members of the same political party or electoral fusion of parties in a legislative assembly such as a parliament or a city council. Parliamenta ...

. The decision followed the election of Halla-aho, who had received criticism both inside and outside of the Finns Party for his strict views on immigration and Islam. MP

Simon Elo Simon Jakob Benjamin Elo (born 8 July 1986 in Lapinjärvi) is a Finnish politician and a former Member of Parliament. He was a representative in the Finns Party until 2017 and was the leader of Finns Party Youth from 2010 to 2014. He was elected ...

was chosen to lead the group for the time being. While Halla-aho's Finns Party was expelled from the Finnish government, the New Alternative continued as a member of the government coalition.

Formation

Sampoterhoeurovaaliväittely2014sanomataloDSCN3350

On 19 June 2017,

Sampo Terho In Finnish mythology, the ''Sampo'' () is a magical device or object described in many different ways that was constructed by the blacksmith Ilmarinen and that brought riches and good fortune to its holder, akin to the horn of plenty (cornucop ...

announced that a new party would be formed based on the New Alternative parliamentary group under the name Blue Reform. The parliamentary group still saw some changes, as on 22 June 2017, Ritva Elomaa left the group to re-join the Finns Party, after which the group had 19 members left. On 30 June 2017,

Hanna Mäntylä Hanna Katariina Mäntylä (born 19 September 1974) is a Finnish politician and the former Minister of Social Affairs and Health. She represented the Finns Party until June 2017 and was the second deputy chairwoman of the party. She was elected to ...

left the Parliament to work for the Council of Europe and she was replaced by the substitute MP

Matti Torvinen Matti Torvinen (born 30 January 1957 in Rovaniemi) is a Finnish politician and the party secretary of the Blue Reform. He represented the Finns Party in the City Council of Rovaniemi since 2012, being elected in 2012 and 2017. Torvinen was a candi ...

(the highest-placed non-elected True Finns candidate). Torvinen subsequently left the Finns Party and joined the New Alternative. On 15 November 2017, the Blue Reform was officially registered as a political party. The first party convention, organized on 16 December 2017, elected Terho as the first chairman of the party and MP

Matti Torvinen Matti Torvinen (born 30 January 1957 in Rovaniemi) is a Finnish politician and the party secretary of the Blue Reform. He represented the Finns Party in the City Council of Rovaniemi since 2012, being elected in 2012 and 2017. Torvinen was a candi ...

as the party secretary. The popularity of the party lagged behind for the rest of its term in Sipilä cabinet. For example, according to a '' Helsingin Sanomat'' opinion poll conducted in May 2018, Blue Reform had a popular support of 1.7 percent, making it the least popular group represented in the

Parliament of Finland The Parliament of Finland ( ; ) is the unicameral and supreme legislature of Finland, founded on 9 May 1906. In accordance with the Constitution of Finland, sovereignty belongs to the people, and that power is vested in the Parliament. The ...

. The party also saw two defections, as MP

Kaj Turunen Kaj Valentin Turunen (born 27 December 1960 in Lohja) is a Finnish politician. Turunen was elected to the Finnish Parliament in the 2011 election as a The Finns Party candidate from the electoral district of Southern Savonia with 2,631 votes. In ...

defected to the National Coalition Party in April 2018 and MP Maria Lohela to

Movement Now Movement Now ( fi, Liike Nyt , sv, Rörelse nu) is an economically liberal political party in Finland. It was founded by then- National Coalition Party (NCP) member of parliament (MP) Harry "Hjallis" Harkimo and seven other people as a polit ...

in January 2019. On 8 March 2019, Juha Sipilä asked permission from President of Finland Sauli Niinistö to dissolve the cabinet, because of the failure to reach agreement on the controversial health care reform. The cabinet was dissolved that day but was requested to continue on a caretaker basis until a new government was formed.

Fall from the Parliament

Blue Reform took part in the

parliamentary election A general election is a political voting election where generally all or most members of a given political body are chosen. These are usually held for a nation, state, or territory's primary legislative body, and are different from by-elections ( ...

on 14 April 2019, but failed to get a single seat. Terho ensured after the election that the party would continue its operations, as it still had multiple representatives in local councils. On 3 May 2019, Terho announced he would step down as the Chair of the Blue Reform in June 2019. On 8 June 2019, Kari Kulmala was elected the new chairman. In September 2021, Petri Roininen, the corporate director of Investors House, was elected the new chairman of the party.Investors Housen Petri Roininen aikoo palauttaa Sinisille tulevaisuuden ja toivoo Suomeen yrittäjyysministeriä – ”Haluamme haastaa tämän verovaltion”
– ''

Kauppalehti ''Kauppalehti'' (Finnish: "Trade Newspaper") is a commerce-oriented newspaper published in Helsinki, Finland. The paper has been in circulation since 1898. History and profile ''Kauppalehti'' was established by the Finnish Businessmen's Associat ...

'' (in Finnish)

Politics

Blue Reform says that it wants a society that encourages people to work, to found businesses and to care about others and ensures a living for every citizen. The party also respects family values and says that "the only interest group it works for is the people of Finland". In addition, Blue Reform says that it respects

human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...

and denounces all hatred towards human beings.

Electoral performance

Parliamentary elections

European elections

Municipal elections

Elected representatives

Former Members of Parliament

*

Simon Elo Simon Jakob Benjamin Elo (born 8 July 1986 in Lapinjärvi) is a Finnish politician and a former Member of Parliament. He was a representative in the Finns Party until 2017 and was the leader of Finns Party Youth from 2010 to 2014. He was elected ...

(2017–2019; Finns Party MP 2015–2017) * Tiina Elovaara (2017–2019; Finns Party MP 2015–2017) * Reijo Hongisto (2017–2019; Finns Party MP 2011–2017) * Ari Jalonen (2017–2019; Finns Party MP 2011–2017) * Kimmo Kivelä (2017–2019; Finns Party MP 2011–2017) * Kari Kulmala (2017–2019; Finns Party MP 2015–2017) * Jari Lindström (2017–2019; Finns Party MP 2011–2017) * Anne Louhelainen (2017–2019; Finns Party MP 2011–2017) *

Pirkko Mattila Pirkko Anneli Mattila is a Finnish politician and a former Member of the Finnish Parliament, representing the Blue Reform party at the end of her tenure. She was first elected MP in the 2011 general election. Mattila replaced Hanna Mäntylä as ...

(2017–2019; Finns Party MP 2011–2017) * Lea Mäkipää (2017–2019; Rural Party MP 1983–1995, Finns Party MP 2011–2017) * Martti Mölsä (2017–2019; Finns Party MP 2011–2017) *

Jussi Niinistö Jussi Niinistö (born 27 October 1970 in Helsinki) is a Finnish politician and a former Minister of Defence. Since 2011, he has been a member of Finnish Parliament, representing the Finns Party 2011–2017 and Blue Reform since 2017. By occupati ...

(2017–2019; Finns Party MP 2011–2017) * Pentti Oinonen (2017–2019; Finns Party MP 2007–2017) * Vesa-Matti Saarakkala (2017–2019; Finns Party MP 2011–2017) *

Timo Soini Timo Juhani Soini (born 30 May 1962) is a Finnish politician who is the co-founder and former leader of the Finns Party. He served as Deputy Prime Minister of Finland from 2015 to 2017 and Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2015 to 2019. He was e ...

(2017–2019; Finns Party MP 2003–2009, 2011–2017) *

Sampo Terho In Finnish mythology, the ''Sampo'' () is a magical device or object described in many different ways that was constructed by the blacksmith Ilmarinen and that brought riches and good fortune to its holder, akin to the horn of plenty (cornucop ...

(2017–2019; Finns Party MP 2015–2017) *

Matti Torvinen Matti Torvinen (born 30 January 1957 in Rovaniemi) is a Finnish politician and the party secretary of the Blue Reform. He represented the Finns Party in the City Council of Rovaniemi since 2012, being elected in 2012 and 2017. Torvinen was a candi ...

(2017–2019) *

Kike Elomaa Ritva Tuulikki "Kike" Elomaa (née ''Sainio''; born 16 July 1955, in Lokalahti) is a Finnish professional female bodybuilding champion, pop singer, and member of the Finnish Parliament. Early life and education Kike Elomaa was born in Lokalah ...

(2017; Finns Party MP 2011–2017; defected back to the Finns Party in 2017) * Maria Lohela (2017–2019; Finns Party MP 2011–2017; defected to Liike Nyt in 2019) *

Hanna Mäntylä Hanna Katariina Mäntylä (born 19 September 1974) is a Finnish politician and the former Minister of Social Affairs and Health. She represented the Finns Party until June 2017 and was the second deputy chairwoman of the party. She was elected to ...

(2017; Finns Party MP 2011–2017; left to work for the Council of Europe) *

Kaj Turunen Kaj Valentin Turunen (born 27 December 1960 in Lohja) is a Finnish politician. Turunen was elected to the Finnish Parliament in the 2011 election as a The Finns Party candidate from the electoral district of Southern Savonia with 2,631 votes. In ...

(2017–2018; Finns Party MP 2011–2017; defected to the National Coalition Party in 2018)

References

External links

*
Blue Reform Parliamentary Group
on the website of the

Parliament of Finland The Parliament of Finland ( ; ) is the unicameral and supreme legislature of Finland, founded on 9 May 1906. In accordance with the Constitution of Finland, sovereignty belongs to the people, and that power is vested in the Parliament. The ...

Parliamentary groups
on the website of the Parliament of Finland {{Alliance of Conservatives and Reformists in Europe 2017 establishments in Finland Political parties established in 2017 Conservative parties in Finland Political organisations based in Finland Finns Party breakaway groups