1987 Finnish parliamentary election

1987 Finnish parliamentary election

← 1983 15–16 March 1987 1991 →
All 200 seats in the Parliament of Finland 101 seats needed for a majority
First party Second party Third party   Leader Kalevi Sorsa Ilkka Suominen Paavo Väyrynen Party SDP National Coalition Centre Last election 26.71%, 57 seats 22.12%, 44 seats 17.63%, 38 seats Seats won 56 53 40 Seat change 1 9 2 Popular vote 695,331 666,236 507,460 Percentage 24.14% 23.13% 17.62% Swing 2.57pp 1.01pp 0.01pp   Fourth party Fifth party Sixth party   Leader Esko Helle Christoffer Taxell Pekka Vennamo Party SKDL RKP Rural Party Last election 13.46%, 26 seats 4.61%, 10 seats 9.69%, 17 seats Seats won 16 12 9 Seat change 10 2 8 Popular vote 270,433 152,597 181,938 Percentage 9.39% 5.30% 6.32% Swing 4.07pp 0.69pp 3.37pp   Seventh party Eighth party Ninth party   Leader Esko Almgren Kristiina Halkola Kalle Könkkölä Party Christian League Democratic Alternative Green Last election 3.03%, 3 seats – 1.47%, 2 seats Seats won 5 4 4 Seat change 2 New 2 Popular vote 74,209 122,181 115,988 Percentage 2.58% 4.24% 4.03% Swing 0.45pp New 2.56pp
Prime Minister before election Kalevi Sorsa SDP Prime Minister after election Harri Holkeri National Coalition

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Parliamentary elections were held in Finland on 15 and 16 March 1987.^[1]

The results saw a rightwards shift in Finnish politics, although it was uncertain how far, because the voter turnout — at a comparatively low 75% — hurt the left more than the right and had a variable impact. The centre-right National Coalition Party (KOK) increased its vote share by only 1% yet gained nine seats in the Eduskunta, almost overtaking the Social Democratic Party (SDP) as the largest party. The SDP vote share dropped by 3%, with 100,000 fewer votes, yet they lost only one seat due to the way their votes were distributed across the country. The Centre Party's vote share remained stable and it gained two new seats. The Greens, who had registered a significant gain in the 1984 municipal elections gained two seats, far fewer than expected. Weakened perhaps from its membership in the long-lived government, the Finnish Rural Party (SMP) lost more than one-third of its support and almost half of its seats.