Reykjavík mayor Jón Gnarr is officially running for parliament next spring. Despite his current popularity, one political scientist considers it unlikely that he will win a seat.
With parliamentary elections coming up next spring, political parties new and old are gearing up for campaigning. Among them is the party Björt Framtíð (“Bright Future”), the sister party of The Best Party, which currently controls Reykjavík city council with Jón Gnarr at the helm.
Vísir reports that Jón will be running on Bright Future’s ticket, occupying the fifth spot on the list of candidates for the Reykjavík North district. This means this party will need to win at least five seats in this district for Jón to get a seat in parliament.
“I would say that Jón Gnarr enjoys a good amount of popularity, but considering history, it is rather unlikely that he will make it into parliament,” Stefanía Óskarsdóttir, a political scientist, told Vísir.
Going by historical data, she says, new parties usually do not get more than about 7.5% of the total national electorate, gaining about four seats from all districts combined. The Best Party managed to win 34.7% of the vote in the municipal elections, which she says was an exception to the trend, but that city elections are a far cry from national elections.
Stefanía said she was surprised to see Jón Gnarr so far down on the list, pointing out that someone in the 5th seat in one of the Reykjavík districts usually does not make it into parliament, even when it comes to larger parties. “I think it’s unlikely that a new party will get so much support,” she said.
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