Icelandic President Gudni Jóhannesson has secured another term in office. The 52-year-old clearly prevailed against his only challenger Gudmundur Franklín Jónsson in the presidential election.
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After counting a fifth of the ballot papers, Jóhannesson’s victory was certain: he led the night of Sunday with a vote share of more than 90 percent. His opponent Jónsson conceded the defeat with around nine percent of the votes. The exact turnout was initially unknown. Around 252,000 Icelanders were eligible to vote. The exact result should be known in the course of Sunday.
Jóhannesson has been president of Island and is very popular among Icelanders. Polls had predicted more than 90 percent of the votes before the election.
“Hard, but also modest”
In an interview with RUV, Jóhannesson said he wanted to be a leader like the German FC Liverpool coach Jürgen Klopp, who recently secured the first English football championship title with his team in 30 years. “He showed responsibility but also modesty. He was competitive but also polite. Tough but also modest,” said Jóhannesson. That is good leadership style. “That’s the kind of president I want to be in the next four years.”
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The President in Iceland has a largely representative role, but he can prevent laws from being enacted and referendums can be scheduled. Political decision-making rests with the government, which is currently run by Prime Minister Katrin Jakobsdottir.
Jóhannesson was elected the youngest president since Iceland’s independence in 1944 in 2016. According to the MMR survey institute, his approval ratings were between 76 and 86 percent during his entire term of office, on average around 25 percent higher than that of his predecessor.
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