Social Democratic Party of Finland
Name in Finnish	Suomen Sosialidemokraattinen Puolue
Name in Swedish	Finlands Socialdemokratiska Parti
Leader	Eero Heinäluoma
Founded	1899
Headquarters	Saariniemenkatu 6 FI-00530 HELSINKI
Political Ideology	Social democratic
International Affiliation	Socialist International
Colours	Red
Website	www.sosialidemokraatit.fi (http://www.sosialidemokraatit.fi/cgi-bin/iisi3.pl?cid=sdp)
See also	Finnish Politics Finnish Parliament Finnish Government Finnish President Political parties Elections This is a copyrighted and/or trademarked logo. ... 1899 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Social democracy is a political ideology emerging in the late 19th and early 20th centuries from supporters of Marxism who believed that the transition to a socialist society could be achieved through democratic evolutionary rather than revolutionary means. ... The official symbol of Socialist International The Socialist International (SI) is an international organisation for social democratic and democratic socialist parties. ... Red is a color at the lowest frequencies of light discernible by the human eye. ... Finland has a primarily parliamentary system, although the president also has some notable powers. ... The Eduskunta in Finnish, or the Riksdag in Swedish, is the parliament of Finland. ... Finland is a republic with a representative democracy governed according to the principles of Parliamentarism. ... The President of Finland (Suomen Tasavallan Presidentti; Republiken Finlands President) is the Head of State of Finland. ... Political parties in Finland lists political parties in Finland. ... Politics of Finland See also [[List of political parties in Åland|political parties in Åland]]. Categories: Election related stubs | Elections in Finland | Finnish politics ...

The Social Democratic Party of Finland (SDP) is one of the most influential political parties in Finland, along with the Centre Party and the Coalition Party. Some even debate that the SDP's influence is so extensive, that other polical parties are powerless to challenge it, and merely cooperate, regardless of whether they hold more seats or not. SDP's social democratic politics are generally more moderate than those of the other left-leaning party, the Left Alliance. A political party is a political organization that subscribes to a certain ideology and seeks to attain political power within a government. ... The Centre Party (Finnish: Suomen Keskusta) is a centrist political party in Finland. ... The National Coalition Party (Kansallinen Kokoomus or Samlingspartiet) is a political party in Finland. ... Social democracy is a political ideology emerging in the late 19th and early 20th centuries from supporters of Marxism who believed that the transition to a socialist society could be achieved through democratic evolutionary rather than revolutionary means. ... In politics, left-wing, political left, leftism, or simply the left, are terms that refer (with no particular precision) to the segment of the political spectrum typically associated with any of several strains of socialism, social democracy, or liberalism (especially but not exclusively in the American sense of the word... The Left Alliance or Vasemmistoliitto is a political party in Finland. ...

Since the disastrous Civil War in Finland of 1918, SDP lost some of its support, current gaining on average about one-quarter of the vote. The Social Democratic Party has about 59,000 members. Paavo Lipponen is party leader. Tarja Halonen was SDP's candidate, winning election to the presidency. The Civil War in Finland was fought from January to May 1918, between the Reds (punaiset), i. ... 1918 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Paavo Tapio Lipponen (b. ... Tarja Kaarina Halonen (born December 24, 1943) is a Finnish lawyer and politician. ... The President of Finland (Suomen Tasavallan Presidentti; Republiken Finlands President) is the Head of State of Finland. ...

SDP won 53 of the 200 seats in Parliament in the March 16, 2003 elections, which ended in a very close run with the Center Party. As a result, SDP's chairman Paavo Lipponen has become the Speaker of Parliament, and the Centre-chairwoman Anneli Jäätteenmäki became Prime Minister for a coalition Cabinet that also included the minor Swedish People's Party beside the two major partners. SDP has eight portfolios in the Cabinet. After two months Jäätteenmäki was switched for Matti Vanhanen due to a scandal. The Eduskunta in Finnish, or the Riksdag in Swedish, is the parliament of Finland. ... March 16 is the 75th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (76th in Leap years). ... 2003 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Categories: Politics stubs | Liberal related stubs | Liberal parties | Finnish political parties | Nordic Agrarian parties ... Paavo Tapio Lipponen (b. ... The term Speaker is usually the title given to the presiding officer of a countrys lower house of parliament or congress (i. ... Anneli Jäätteenmäki, Prime Minister 2003, MEP 2004- Anneli Tuulikki Jäätteenmäki (Master of Laws, born February 11, 1955 in Lapua) was the first female Prime Minister of Finland, in office April 17th, 2003, to June 18th, 2003. ... A prime minister may be either: the chief or leading member of the cabinet of the top-level government in a country having a parliamentary system of government; or the official, in countries with a semi-presidential system of government, appointed to manage the civil service and execute the directives... A Cabinet is a body of high-ranking members of government, typically representing the executive branch. ... The Swedish Peoples Party (Svenska folkpartiet (SFP) in Swedish or Ruotsalainen kansanpuolue (RKP) in Finnish) is a Swedish minority and mainly liberal party in Finland. ... Matti Taneli Vanhanen (born November 4, 1955, in Jyväskylä) is the current Prime Minister of Finland (as of July 2003) and chairman of the Centre Party. ...

Note that despite the fact that "sosiaali" in Finnish has a long "a," the name of this party is spelt with a short "a", for historical reasons. The official name (as registered in Finland's party registry) is Suomen Sosialidemokraattinen Puolue / Finlands Socialdemokratiska Parti r.p.

History

SDP was founded in the 1880s, but came to remain a chiefly extra-parliamentary movement until the Universal suffrage of 1906, after which SDP's share of the votes and seats approached 50%. Unfortunately, the reform of the Parliament wasn't followed by Parliamentarism, which is why the party and its voters found themselves virtually without influence, despite the high turnouts. Inevitably this led to a decreased confidence in democratic methods and increased interest for the Revolution. After the two revolutions in Russia in 1917, the polarization between poor and wealthy in Finland grew even wider, and the support for revolutionary means increased rapidly - actually much faster than the party organization and the trade unions could follow. The Civil War in Finland followed in 1918, and resulted in virtually all party leaders on all levels becoming either killed, imprisoned or refugees abroad. In addition, the process leading to the Civil War, and the War itself, had stripped the party of its prestige, legitimacy, authority and respectability. Events and Trends Technology Development and commercial production of electric lighting Development and commercial production of gasoline-powered automobile by Karl Benz, Gottlieb Daimler and Maybach First commercial production and sales of phonographs and phonograph recordings. ... Universal suffrage (also general suffrage or common suffrage) consists of the extension of suffrage, or the right to vote, to all adults, without distinction as to race, sex, belief or social status. ... 1906 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Voters at the voting booths in the United States in 1945. ... The debating chamber or hemicycle of the European Parliament in Brussels. ... A parliamentary system, or parliamentarism, is distinguished by the executive branch of government being dependent on the direct or indirect support of the parliament, often expressed through a vote of confidence. ... The term democracy indicates a form of government where all the states decisions are exercised directly or indirectly by a majority of its citizenry through a fair elective process. ... A revolution is a relatively sudden and absolutely drastic change. ... 1917 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... A union (labor union in American English; trade union in British English; either labour union or trade union in Canadian English) is a group of workers who act collectively to address common issues. ... The Civil War in Finland was fought from January to May 1918, between the Reds (punaiset), i. ... 1918 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... Prestige means good reputation or high esteem, although it originally meant a delusion or magicians trick (Latin præstigum). ... The word legitimacy comes from the Latin word legitimare and it has two uses: Legitimacy (political science) is whether or not people accept the validity of a law or ruling or the validity of a governing regime. ... In politics, authority generally refers to the ability to make laws, independent of the power to enforce them, or the ability to permit something. ...

Refugee Social Democrats founded the Communist Party of Finland in Moscow in 1918. The split in the Finnish political left seems permanent. Communist Party of Finland (Suomen Kommunistinen Puolue, abbreviated SKP) is a political party endorsing communism in Finland. ... Moscow (Russian/Cyrillic: Москва́, pronunciation: Moskvá) is the capital of Russia, located on the river Moskva, and encompassing 1097. ... 1918 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ...

It became the life's work of Väinö Tanner to regain the reputation as a housetrained party, capable of serious matters - such as governing Finland. The result was a much more patriotic SDP, leaning a lot less to the left and relatively isolating it from its Nordic sister-parties. The political back-lash after the world depression following the Wall Street Crash in 1929 would however postpone SDP's rehabilitation until after President Svinhufvud's term. With the exception of a brief period in 1926, SDP was excluded from Cabinet participation beginning with Oskari Tokoi's Senate's unsuccessful claim of Finland's independence in 1917 until Kyösti Kallio's presidency 1937. During World War II however, the party played a central role in the government, symolizing the national unity in response to the threat of the USSR and the Winter War in 1939-40. Väinö Tanner (March 12, 1881 – April 19, 1966) was a pioneer and leader in the Co-op Movement in Finland. ... Patriotism is a feeling of love and devotion to ones own homeland (patria, the land of ones fathers). ... In politics, left-wing, political left, leftism, or simply the left, are terms that refer (with no particular precision) to the segment of the political spectrum typically associated with any of several strains of socialism, social democracy, or liberalism (especially but not exclusively in the American sense of the word... The Nordic countries (Greenland not shown) The Nordic countries is a term used collectively for five countries in Northern Europe. ... The Great Depression was a global economic slump that began in 1929 and bottomed in 1933. ... For the protest against the Communications Decency Act, see Black World Wide Web protest. ... 1929 was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... Pehr Evind Svinhufvud af Qvalstad (December 15, 1861 – February 29, 1944) was the President of Finland from 1931 to 1937. ... 1926 was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1917 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Statue of K. Kallio in Helsinki Kyösti Kallio (April 10, 1873 – December 19, 1940) was the fourth President of Finland (1937_1940). ... 1937 was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km (over 11 miles) into the air. ... The Winter War (also known as the Soviet-Finnish War or the Russo-Finnish War) broke out when the Soviet Union attacked Finland on November 30, 1939, three months after the start of World War II. As a consequence, the Soviet Union was expelled from the League of Nations on... 1939 was a common year starting on Sunday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1940 was a leap year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ...

During the first few months of the Continuation War (1941-1944) the country, the parliament and the coalition Cabinet was divided on the question whether Finland's army should stop at the old border and thereby demonstratively refrain from any attempts of conquests. The country's dangerous position called however on national unity, and the party's leadership chose to refrain from any visible protests. This decision is often indicated as one of the main reasons behind the increased and cemented weakness of the Social Democrats, and the high percentage of Communist voters in the first elections after the Continuation War. The other main reason being the rebellion 1918 leading to the Civil War in Finland. The Continuation War was fought between Finland and the Soviet Union during World War II; from the Soviet bombing attacks on June 25, 1941, to cease-fire September 4, 1944 (on the Finnish side) and September 5 (on the Soviet side). ... 1941 was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1944 was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1918 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... The Civil War in Finland was fought from January to May 1918, between the Reds (punaiset), i. ...

After the Continuation War the Social Democratic party finally seemed to have become equally respected as any other party, although it remained obvious that the Soviet Union was more suspicious against SDP than against the "openly" bourgeois parties. In the presidential election of 1956, SDP's candidate Karl-August Fagerholm lost with only one single elector's vote to Urho Kekkonen. The Continuation War was fought between Finland and the Soviet Union during World War II; from the Soviet bombing attacks on June 25, 1941, to cease-fire September 4, 1944 (on the Finnish side) and September 5 (on the Soviet side). ... Bourgeois at the end of the thirteenth century Bourgeois redirects here; for the composer with that name, see Derek Bourgeois. ... 1956 was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Karl-August Fagerholm (born 31 December 1901; dead 22 May 1984) was Speaker of Parliament and three times Prime Minister of Finland (1948–50, 1956–57, 1958–59). ... Urho Kekkonen Urho Kaleva Kekkonen (September 3, 1900–August 31, 1986) was a Finnish politician who served as Prime Minister of Finland (1950–1956) and later as President of Finland (1956–1981). ...

Prominent Social Democrats

• Otto Ville Kuusinen
• Oskari Tokoi
• Väinö Tanner - Prime Minister, Foreign Minister during the Winter War
• Karl-August Fagerholm - Prime Minister, Speaker of Parliament
• Kalevi Sorsa - Prime Minister
• Mauno Koivisto - President 1982-1994
• Martti Ahtisaari - President 1994-2000
• Paavo Lipponen - Prime Minister 1995-2003 and Speaker of Parliament
• Tarja Halonen - President 2000--

Väinö Tanner (March 12, 1881 – April 19, 1966) was a pioneer and leader in the Co-op Movement in Finland. ... The Prime Minister (Finnish Pääministeri, Swedish: Statsminister) is the Head of Government in Finland. ... The Winter War (also known as the Soviet-Finnish War or the Russo-Finnish War) broke out when the Soviet Union attacked Finland on November 30, 1939, three months after the start of World War II. As a consequence, the Soviet Union was expelled from the League of Nations on... Karl-August Fagerholm (born 31 December 1901; dead 22 May 1984) was Speaker of Parliament and three times Prime Minister of Finland (1948–50, 1956–57, 1958–59). ... Taisto Kalevi Sorsa (December 21, 1930 - January 16, 2004) was a Finnish politician who was Prime Minister of Finland four times: 1972-1975, 1977-1979, 1982-1983 and 1983-1987 and at the date of his death still held the Finnish record of most days of incumbency as prime minister. ... Mauno Henrik Koivisto (born November 25, 1923) was the president of Finland from 1982 to 1994. ... 1982 is a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1994 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ... Martti Oiva Kalevi Ahtisaari (born June 23, 1937) is a former President of Finland (1994 - 2000). ... 1994 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ... 2000 is a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Paavo Tapio Lipponen (b. ... 1995 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2003 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Tarja Kaarina Halonen (born December 24, 1943) is a Finnish lawyer and politician. ... 2000 is a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Party Chairmen since 1945

• Onni Alfred Hiltunen - 1944-1946
• Emil Skog - 1946-1957
• Väinö Tanner - 1957-1963
• Rafael Paasio - 1963-1975
• Kalevi Sorsa - 1975-1987
• Pertti Kullervo Paasio - 1987-1991
• Ulf Ludwig Sundqvist - 1991-1993
• Paavo Lipponen - 1993-2005
• Eero Heinäluoma - 2005 -

Väinö Tanner (March 12, 1881 – April 19, 1966) was a pioneer and leader in the Co-op Movement in Finland. ... Taisto Kalevi Sorsa (December 21, 1930 - January 16, 2004) was a Finnish politician who was Prime Minister of Finland four times: 1972-1975, 1977-1979, 1982-1983 and 1983-1987 and at the date of his death still held the Finnish record of most days of incumbency as prime minister. ... Paavo Tapio Lipponen (b. ...

External links

• Official website (http://www.sosialidemokraatit.fi) (in Finnish)