From Iceland — Undecided, Protest Voters Outnumber Some Opposition Parties

Undecided, Protest Voters Outnumber Some Opposition Parties

Published March 30, 2016

Andie Sophia Fontaine
Photo by
Silje Bergum Kinsten/norden.org

A new poll shows some surprising levels of support – for none of the above.

According to the results of an informal Reykjavík siðdegis poll conducted by Vísir over the past week, wherein respondents were asked who they would vote for if parliamentary elections were held today, undecideds and those who intend to submit a blank ballot outnumber several opposition parties combined.

The party with the highest level of support was the Pirate Party – as has also been the case in formal polls conducted by Gallup and MMR over the past year – who came in at 27.5%.

The ruling coalition of the Independence Party and the Progressives had a higher combined percentage than the Pirates, but neither of them individually topped their numbers. 20.7% of respondents said they would vote for the Independence Party if elections were held today, while 19.4% said they same of the Progressives.

Where opposition parties are concerned, 4.7% said they would vote for the Left-Greens; 4.7% said they would vote for the Social Democrats, and only 1.8% said they would vote for Bright Future.

The real story, however, can be found amongst those who chose none of the above parties. If elections were held today, 9.2% said they would submit a blank ballot, and 6.7% said they were still undecided. With a total level of support of 15.9%, these voters outnumber support for all opposition parties except for the Pirates combined.

Parliamentary elections are to be held in May 2017 – barring any extraordinary circumstances.

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