RVK Newscast 181: Election Fever On The Streets

On today’s RVK Newscast, editor-in-chief, Valur Grettisson is out getting heckled on the streets of Reykjavík! Election season has started and we hear from the Mayor of Reykjavík, as well as looking at some of the main issues impacting the polls right now. Read on for more information and links!

Polls show that 71% of the Icelandic population have little trust in Finance Minister Bjarni Benediktsson after the recent sale of shares in Íslandsbanki, which the government has conceded was “deeply flawed.” Pressure has been mounting for Bjarni to resign after the list of buyers was revealed to the public, including controversial figures from the financial crash of 2008, as well as the minister’s own father. Read our latest coverage of the case here.

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Municipal elections are coming up in Iceland on the 14th of May. Mayor of Reykjavík, Dagur B. Eggertsson joined us on our podcast, The Icelandic Roundup, to discuss some of the key issues affecting voters, including systemic racism and affordable housing. You can watch the interview on Youtube, or listen to The Icelandic Roundup on your preferred podcast app.

There has been an increase in deaths in the first quarter of 2022 compared to the previous year. 760 people have died in the first three months of this year, with that number being 610 in 2021. Iceland’s Chief Epidemiologist Þórólfur Guðnason believes that Covid-19 is partly responsible for this increase in mortality. Read more here.

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