President-elect Alexander Stubb of the National Coalition Party (NCP) held a trilingual press conference on Monday afternoon in which he pledged to serve as leader of the entire nation after the closest-ever direct presidential election. He will be sworn in as Finland's 13th president on 1 March.
Speaking at the Helsinki Music Centre, Stubb said he would attend the Munich Security Conference this weekend. However, he stressed that he would not do so in the capacity of the Finnish president, as Sauli Niinistö remains in that post for the next two and a half weeks. He took office in 2012.
The future head of state said that he had had phone conversations with Niinistö and former President Tarja Halonen (SDP) since clinching his win on Sunday evening.
Strong support for Ukraine
In general, Stubb said he would continue Niinistö's policies in foreign and security policy, the main area of presidential responsibility. That includes strong support for Ukraine, he said. Stubb and Niinistö are both former leaders of the NCP and vice-presidents of the European Investment Bank.
Stubb called for a more Europe-centred Nato, stressing that Finland and the whole of the continent must take responsibility for its own defence capability.
The president-elect, who holds the military rank of lance corporal, said he would take an "active role" as Commander-in-Chief of the Finnish Defence Forces.
Stubb also said that he intends to lead Finland's foreign policy in close contact with the government. That should not be politically difficult as his NCP holds the largest number of posts in the cabinet, including PM Petteri Orpo, Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen and Defence Minister Antti Häkkänen.
He said that his first trip abroad as president would very likely be to Sweden, which he referred as “practically already a Nato member,” noting that only the Hungarian Parliament’s approval stands in the way.
Haavisto won in most large cities and the north
Stubb thanked his second-round opponent, Pekka Haavisto (Green/independent), and the seven other first-round candidates. He said the elections were fair and represented a victory for democracy in Finland.
Sunday's second-round result was 51.6 percent for Stubb and 48.4 percent for Haavisto – the closest-ever runoff for the Finnish presidency since the current electoral system was adopted 30 years ago.
That was closer than suggested by the last Yle poll, published on Thursday. It showed Stubb with 54 percent support to Haavisto's 46 percent.
Haavisto, who lost to Niinistö in the two previous elections, this time won more of the votes in Finland's urban areas, with clear majorities in Helsinki, Turku, Tampere, Jyväskylä and Oulu, as well as in most of Lapland and the Åland Islands. Stubb, meanwhile, fared better in the Helsinki suburbs of Espoo, Vantaa and Kauniainen as well as generally in smaller towns and rural areas.
