Sanna Marin | |
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![]() Marin in 2019 | |
46th Prime Minister of Finland | |
Assumed office 10 December 2019 | |
President | Sauli Niinistö |
Deputy | Katri Kulmuni |
Preceded by | Antti Rinne |
Minister of Transport and Communications | |
In office 6 June 2019 – 10 December 2019 | |
Prime Minister | Antti Rinne |
Preceded by | Anu Vehviläinen |
Succeeded by | Timo Harakka |
Member of the Finnish Parliament | |
Assumed office 22 April 2015 | |
Constituency | Pirkanmaa |
Personal details | |
Born | Sanna Mirella Marin 16 November 1985[1] Helsinki, Uusimaa, Finland |
Political party | Social Democratic Party |
Spouse(s) | Markus Räikkönen |
Children | 1 |
Education | University of Tampere |
Sanna Mirella Marin (Finnish pronunciation: [ˈsɑnːɑ ˈmirelːɑ ˈmɑriːn]) (born 16 November 1985) is a Finnish politician who has been serving as the Prime Minister of Finland since 10 December 2019. A Social Democrat, she has been a member of the Parliament of Finland since 2015 and was the Minister of Transport and Communications between 6 June 2019 and 10 December 2019. After Antti Rinne left his position as Prime Minister, the Social Democratic Party selected Marin as their new candidate for Prime Minister on 8 December 2019. At age 34, Marin became both the world's youngest serving state leader at the time (although she lost that position to Austria's Sebastian Kurz after less than one month, thus she became the youngest female prime minister in the world) and Finland's youngest-ever prime minister.
Sanna Mirella Marin was born on 16 November 1985 in Helsinki.[2][1] She also lived in Espoo and Pirkkala before moving to Tampere.[2][better source needed] Her parents split up when she was very young; the family faced financial problems and Marin's father struggled with alcoholism. After her parents separated, Marin was brought up by her mother and her mother's new female partner.[3][4]
Marin graduated from the Pirkkala High School in 2004 at the age of 19.[5] Marin joined the Social Democratic Youth in 2006 and served as its first Vice President from 2010 to 2012.[6][2] She worked in a bakery and as a cashier while studying,[7] graduating with bachelor's and master's degrees in Administrative Science from the University of Tampere.[4][7]
Marin's political career was described by the BBC as "beginning at the age of 20",[3] in the years following her high school graduation and beginning her affiliation with the Social Democratic Youth.[3][6] She ran an unsuccessful campaign for a city council seat in the city where she lives, Tampere,[3][2] which is the center of the second largest urban area in Finland.[8] In the 2012 elections, at the age of 27, she was elected to the City Council of Tampere, a breakthrough moment in her political career.[9][10] She became chairperson of the City Council within months, serving from 2013 to 2017.[4] In 2017, she was re-elected to the City Council.[11] Youtube clips of her chairing contentious council meetings played a large part in her gaining national prominence.[7]
Marin was elected second deputy chairperson of the Social Democratic Party in 2014.[12][4] In 2015, she was elected to the Finnish Parliament as an MP from the electoral district of Pirkanmaa.[13] Four years later, she was re-elected.[14] On 6 June 2019, she became the Minister of Transport and Communications for Finland.[12][15][7]
In December 2019, Marin was nominated by the Social Democratic Party to succeed Antti Rinne as the Prime Minister of Finland.[16][17] Rinne had been widely criticised over the way he handled a postal strike, but remained the formal leader of the party until a convention in June 2020.[18][19] Marin was narrowly preferred over her rival Antti Lindtman in a majority vote. Marin heads the Marin government formed by a five-party coalition in which 12 out of 19 ministers in the cabinet are women.[20][21] She is the third female head of government of her country, after Anneli Jäätteenmäki and Mari Kiviniemi – both of whom were members of the Centre Party.[9][22][19]
Upon her confirmation by Parliament at the age of 34,[23] she became both the world's youngest serving state leader,[24][25] and Finland's youngest-ever prime minister.[17]
The Marin government continues with the same parties and the same government platform as the preceding Rinne Cabinet, with individual changes of portfolios.[26]
With the global corona pandemic, Marin's cabinet invoked the state of emergency in Finland to alleviate the epidemic.[27]
Marin describes herself as coming from a rainbow family[28] as she was raised by same-sex parents (two women) after her parents split up when she was very young.[15][29][1] She was also the only child in her family and was the first person in her family to attend university.[30]
In January 2018, she and her fiancé, Markus Räikkönen, had a daughter, Emma;[31][32][33] their permanent residence is in the Kaleva district of Tampere[2], but during the 2020 pandemic, they reside at the Prime Minister's official residence Kesäranta in Helsinki.[32]
Marin is a vegetarian but is also "annoyed by the simplification of the climate debate on individuals' consumption choices."[34]
Koulutukseltani olen hallintotieteiden maisteri Tampereen yliopistosta. Ylioppilaaksi kirjoitin Pirkkalan yhteislukiosta vuonna 2004. / Asumme mieheni Markuksen ja kaksivuotiaan tyttäremme Emman kanssa Tampereella Kalevan kaupunginosassa. ... / Juureni löytyvät neljän kunnan alueelta. Olen syntynyt Helsingissä, asunut Espoossa, veittänyt kasvu- ja kouluvuoteni Pirkkalassa ja vihdoin kotiutunut Tampereelle. [I hold a Master of Administrative Sciences from the University of Tampere. I was a student and graduated from Pirkkala High School in 2004. / I live with my husband, Markus, and our two year old daughter, Emma, in the Kaleva district of Tampere. ... / My roots are in four municipalities. I was born in Helsinki, lived in Espoo, spent my years growing up and in school in Pirkkala, and finally settled in Tampere.]
Political offices | ||
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Preceded by Anu Vehviläinen |
Minister of Transport and Communications 2019 |
Succeeded by Timo Harakka |
Preceded by Antti Rinne |
Prime Minister of Finland 2019–present |
Incumbent |