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Voters in Finland are casting ballots on Sunday in a presidential election that comes as NATO\u2019s newest member faces the threat of an antagonistic Russia.<\/p>\n
The election, which is expected to require a second round of voting, is for Finland\u2019s first new head of state in 12 years. The country\u2019s wildly popular president, Sauli Niinist\u00f6, has served two terms and is ineligible to run again.<\/p>\n
Seen as a steadying force, Mr. Niinist\u00f6 is considered the person most responsible<\/a> for getting Finland into the NATO alliance, leaving whomever assumes the presidency with big shoes to fill.<\/p>\n From a field of nine candidates, the latest polls<\/a> show two front-runners: Alexander Stubb and Pekka Haavisto. Both are familiar faces with strong foreign policy credentials.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Results in Sunday\u2019s election are expected later Sunday. If no candidate receives more than half of the vote, a runoff election will be held on Feb. 11 between the top two first-round finishers.<\/p>\n While most European presidents occupy largely ceremonial roles, Finland\u2019s drives foreign policy and serves as the commander in chief. That helped catapult Mr. Niinist\u00f6 to global prominence after Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 \u2014 and cemented his approval rating, which exceeds 90 percent.<\/p>\n \u201cThe most important decision of Sauli Niinist\u00f6\u2019s presidency was to join NATO,\u201d the retired political journalist Unto H\u00e4m\u00e4l\u00e4inen wrote in the current issue of Finland\u2019s Helsingin Sanomat magazine. \u201cHis term will be remembered for that after decades.\u201d<\/p>\n The incoming president will not only draw comparisons to Mr. Niinist\u00f6, but will also be expected to build on his legacy, analysts say. First and foremost will be managing Finland\u2019s integration into NATO amid concerns about potential Russian aggression and escalating tensions in the Baltic Sea region.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cThe expectations are quite high for the successor,\u201d said Juhana Aunesluoma, a professor of political history at the University of Helsinki.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Finland shares an 830-mile border with Russia, along with a combative history. The neighbors have fought numerous wars through the centuries, and Finns have strong memories of the 1939 Winter War and World War II, when their country fought the Soviet Union and lost territory. With the war in Ukraine continuing and Finnish officials accusing Russia of efforts to destabilize their country, analysts say that security is the primary issue on voters\u2019 minds.<\/p>\n That is why, they say, voters are looking for a president with the broadest possible experience in foreign policy. The candidate pool reflects that.<\/p>\n \u201cEven the liberal candidates have adopted a line that stresses military preparedness and border security,\u201d said Johanna Vuorelma, a researcher at the University of Helsinki\u2019s Center for European Studies.<\/p>\n Mr. Haavisto is making his third presidential run after losing out to Mr. Niinist\u00f6 in the past two elections. A founder of the center-left Greens Party, Mr. Haavisto first ran for Parliament in 1987 and has been a staple of Finnish politics since, serving as a lawmaker, a U.N. official and in several government roles. Most recently, he was Finland\u2019s foreign minister from 2019 to 2023.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Mr. Stubb is also a former foreign minister and a former prime minister. A prominent member of the center right, he left Finnish politics in 2017 and swore not to return, but he has said that Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine changed his mind.<\/p>\n The candidates agree on most foreign policy matters, including NATO membership, securing the country\u2019s border<\/a> with Russia and how to handle Moscow.<\/p>\n That has made the differences in their personalities all the more important to voters, according to analysts. Since the campaign season got into full swing this past summer, the candidates have toured Finland to meet voters at schools, gas stations, shopping malls and markets. Mr. Stubb, an Ironman triathlete, has often appeared at sporting events. Mr. Haavisto has adopted the stage name \u201cDJ Pexi\u201d and spun records at student events to appeal to younger voters.<\/p>\n Debates have been dignified and polite, a contrast to parliamentary election campaigns, which are often rowdy. Both Mr. Haavisto and Mr. Stubb have cast themselves as unifiers during the campaign, most likely because of expectations that the election will go to a runoff.<\/p>\n Voter turnout in Finland, a country of 5.6 million people, has tended to be around or above 70 percent for presidential elections. More than 1.8 million Finns, or 44 percent of the country\u2019s eligible voters, cast their ballots in early voting, according to preliminary data<\/a>.<\/p>\n Polling stations were busy on Sunday morning in Helsinki, where a steady stream of voters braved near-freezing temperatures and icy sidewalks to cast their ballots in the Lauttasaari District of the capital. Volunteers greeted them brightly and welcomed them in from the cold.<\/p>\n Cassandra Vinograd contributed reporting from London.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n