Politics of the Åland Islands () take place within a

parliamentary system A parliamentary system, or parliamentary democracy, is a form of government where the head of government (chief executive) derives their Election, democratic legitimacy from their ability to command the support ("confidence") of a majority of t ...

representative democracy Representative democracy, also known as indirect democracy or electoral democracy, is a type of democracy where elected delegates represent a group of people, in contrast to direct democracy. Nearly all modern Western-style democracies func ...

Åland Åland ( , ; ) is an Federacy, autonomous and Demilitarized zone, demilitarised region of Finland. Receiving its autonomy by a 1920 decision of the League of Nations, it is the smallest region of Finland by both area () and population (30,54 ...

is an

autonomous In developmental psychology and moral, political, and bioethical philosophy, autonomy is the capacity to make an informed, uncoerced decision. Autonomous organizations or institutions are independent or self-governing. Autonomy can also be defi ...

, demilitarised, and unilingually Swedish-speaking region of

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

. Executive power is exercised by the

Lantråd Lantråd is the title of the head of government of the Åland Islands in Finland. The person holding the office leads its regional government. The current Lantråd is Katrin Sjögren. __NOTOC__ List List of premiers of the Åland Islands (1922� ...

(premier), who leads the

Government of Åland The Government of Åland () is the executive authority of Åland, an autonomous region of Finland. It is led by the Premier of Åland (), who is elected by the Parliament of Åland (). Åland Premiers * Carl Björkman (politician), Carl Björ ...

() under the supervision of the

Parliament of Åland The Parliament of Åland (''Ålands lagting'') is the unicameral legislature of Åland, an autonomous, Swedish-speaking region of Finland. The Lagting has 30 members who make laws for Åland and oversee its government. Committees Most parli ...

(''Lagting''). The political framework is defined by the Act on Åland Autonomy and international agreements, which guarantee Åland’s autonomy and demilitarised status. The autonomous government handles responsibilities similar to those of Finland’s regional councils.

History

In 1634, Åland was incorporated into

Åbo and Björneborg County Turku and Pori Province (, , ) was a Provinces of Finland, province of independent Finland from 1917 to 1997. The province was however founded as a county in 1634 when today's Finland was an integrated part of Sweden. It is named after the citie ...

as part of administrative reforms initiated by Count

Axel Oxenstierna Axel Gustafsson Oxenstierna (; 1583–1654) was a Swedish statesman and Count of Södermöre. He became a member of the Swedish Privy Council in 1609 and served as Lord High Chancellor of Sweden from 1612 until his death. He was a confidant of ...

. In 1809, Sweden ceded Finland, including Åland, to the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

following the

Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...

. When Finland declared independence in 1917, Åland became part of the new Finnish state. During the

Finnish Civil War The Finnish Civil War was a civil war in Finland in 1918 fought for the leadership and control of the country between Whites (Finland), White Finland and the Finnish Socialist Workers' Republic (Red Finland) during the country's transition fr ...

in 1918, Russian troops remained on the islands, causing unrest. In response, Sweden occupied the territory, and 7,135 residents (from a total population of around 22,500) signed a petition requesting union with Sweden. German forces also intervened during this period. Finnish media discussed a possible territorial exchange—Åland to Sweden in return for parts of

Norrbotten Norrbotten (), sometimes called North Bothnia, is a Swedish province (''landskap'') in northernmost Sweden. It borders south to Västerbotten, west to Swedish Lapland, and east to Finland. Administration The traditional provinces of Swede ...

and

Västerbotten Västerbotten (), sometimes called West Bothnia or Westrobothnia, is a province (''landskap'') in northern Sweden, located by the Gulf of Bothnia. It borders the provinces of Ångermanland, Lapland and Norrbotten. The region is famous for Väs ...

—but Sweden rejected the proposal. In 1921, the issue was brought before the

League of Nations The League of Nations (LN or LoN; , SdN) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920), Paris Peace ...

, which ruled that Åland would remain under Finnish sovereignty. However, the League also mandated protections for the Swedish language, the continuation of demilitarisation, and the granting of autonomy in peacetime."The Åland Agreement in the Council of the League of Nations 1921, Minutes of the Seventeenth Meeting of the Council, June 27th"
(archived)

Autonomy

Åland has its own flag, has issued postage stamps since 1984, maintains a local police force, and is represented in the

Nordic Council The Nordic Council is the official body for formal inter-parliamentary Nordic cooperation among the Nordic countries. Formed in 1952, it has 87 representatives from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden as well as from the autonomo ...

. Male residents are exempt from conscription. Parliamentarism has been the custom since 1988. Although Åland remains under Finnish sovereignty, it exercises extensive self-government and elects one representative to the

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

. Since the 1920s, the central political issue has been the preservation and development of autonomy.

Executive branch

In addition to the autonomous Government of Åland (''Ålands landskapsregering''), the

Government of Finland The Finnish Government (; ; ) is the executive branch and cabinet of Finland, which directs the politics of Finland and is the main source of legislation proposed to the Parliament. The Government has collective ministerial responsibility an ...

is represented by the State Department of Åland (''Statens ämbetsverk på Åland''). It is headed by the Governor of Åland (currently Peter Lindbäck) and performs national administrative functions in the territory.

Legislative branch

The

(''Lagtinget'', meaning "law assembly") is a unicameral legislature with 30 members, elected every four years by

proportional representation Proportional representation (PR) refers to any electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to political divisions (Political party, political parties) amon ...

Political parties and elections

Until the late 1970s, Ålandic politics were dominated by prominent individuals. A structured party system developed later. Major political parties since 1979 include: *

Åland Social Democrats The Åland Social Democrats () is a social-democratic political party on the Åland Islands. In the 2023 parliamentary election, the party won 12.82% of the popular vote and 4 out of 30 seats, a gain of one. The current organisation was found ...

* Åland Centre *

Liberals for Åland The Liberals for Åland () is a liberal political party on the Åland Islands. The party is an observer member of the Liberal International. The current party leader is Katrin Sjögren. Elections See also * Liberalism Liberalism is ...

* Moderates of Åland The political left is relatively weak compared to other Nordic regions.

Local government

Åland is divided into 16

municipalities A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

(''kommuner''). These local governments manage services such as education, healthcare, planning, and infrastructure.

References

External links

Lagtinget
– Official site (archived)
Landskapsregeringen
– Official site (archived)

– Text of the autonomy law (archived) {{DEFAULTSORT:Politics of Aland Politics of Åland