Most of those 25 candidates who were elected to comprise a constitutional assembly said they would accept a seat if appointed instead to a committee.
As reported, the constitutional assembly concept has been up in the air since the Supreme Court ruled the elections invalid, due to what they saw as multiple violations of election law. The ruling coalition came to the conclusion yesterday that instead of holding new elections, they would appoint those 25 people who won the election to a constitutional committee.
RÚV reports that most of the 25 would accept the appointment. Able to reach 20 of the 25, 14 said that they would say yes, while six were still undecided.
Among the undecided is Pawel Bartoszek, who said he was disappointed with the decision. He told reporters that he has always been of the opinion that when an election is ruled invalid, that a new one is held. He believes this to be the most natural response to such a ruling.
Eyjan also reports some mixed reactions. Þorvaldur Gylfason, who won the most votes in the constitutional assembly elections, would not comment on the decision, while Illugi Jökulsson said that even though he wasn’t thrilled with the idea of being appointed instead of elected, that he found the reasoning behind the Supreme Court decision to be very weak.
As the measure to appoint the 25 has the support of at least the ruling coalition and The Movement, ultimate passage seems likely. The conservatives remain opposed to the idea of revising the constitution, however, and it is still unknown which way the Progressives will vote.
Related:
Government To Bypass Supreme Court Ruling
40% Of Icelanders Want Government To Appoint Constitutional Committee
Prime Minister: There Will Be A Constitutional Assembly
Constitutional Assembly May Be Reality After All
Response To Court Ruling On Constitutional Assembly Mixed
Constitutional Assembly Elections Ruled Invalid
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