5,621,740 people
Source: Tyranny Tracker
HRF classifies Finland as democratic.
Finland is a parliamentary republic. Having gained independence from Russia in 1917, the country maintained its democratic institutions throughout the Cold War while navigating a policy of neutrality. In recent years, Finland has abandoned its long-standing policy of military non-alignment, culminating in its accession to NATO in April 2023. Legislative power is vested in the Eduskunta (Parliament), a unicameral body composed of 200 members elected every four years. Executive power is shared between the President, who is responsible for foreign policy outside of the EU, and the Cabinet (Council of State), led by the Prime Minister. Following the April 2023 parliamentary elections, a right-leaning coalition government was formed by the National Coalition Party (NCP), the Finns Party, the Swedish People’s Party, and the Christian Democrats, with Petteri Orpo serving as Prime Minister. In 2024, Alexander Stubb was elected President.
National elections are largely free and fair. The country features a highly competitive multiparty system characterized by regular transfers of power and the absence of single-party dominance. The 2023 parliamentary elections and 2024 presidential elections were held in an environment of genuine competition, affirming the resilience of democratic procedures. While international observers have made recommendations regarding the transparency of campaign finance, these shortcomings are not systemic and do not distort the will of the voters.
Independent media, civil society leaders, and the political opposition are largely free to criticize the government. Finland protects freedom of speech and the right to peaceful assembly; however, the 2024–2025 period has seen increased tensions between the government and organized labor unions. Legislative restrictions on the right to strike against government policy to a maximum of 24 hours and the freezing of funding for the public broadcaster, Yle, have drawn sharp criticism from the opposition and civil society, who view these measures as attempts to weaken traditional mechanisms of social dialogue and independent media.
Institutions are independent and serve as an effective check on the government. The judiciary enjoys high public trust, and oversight bodies such as the Chancellor of Justice and the Parliamentary Constitutional Law Committee play a key role in the legal review of executive actions. However, the adoption of the “Border Security Act” (or “Pushback Law”) in 2024, which allows for the temporary suspension of asylum applications at the eastern border, established a precedent prioritizing national security over fundamental human rights, sparking debate about the potential politicization of constitutional review process, as the Constitutional Law Committee prioritized national security over established asylum rights to address the border crisis.
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