On December 8, the 34-year-old Sanna Marin, from Finland's Social Democratic Party was selected by her party to lead the Nordic nation, as its 46th Prime Minister. Social Democratic party is the largest among the five-party coalition that is leading the country, after the elections held in April, this year.
Marin was selected after Antti Rinne's resignation from the Prime Minister's post on December 3. Rinne stepped down after losing the confidence of a coalition member over his handling of a postal strike.
Marin set to become the world's youngest Prime Minister
In the process of selecting Finland's next Prime Minister on December 8, Marin received 32 votes while fellow SDP politician in the running for the premiership Antti Lindtman drew 29 votes from members of the Social Democratic Party Council, Finland's YLE broadcaster reported. She will be sworn in, this week.
Post her selection, Marin told reporters, "We have a lot of work to do to rebuild trust". She brushed away questions about her age, saying, "I have never thought about my age or gender, I think of the reasons I got into politics and those things for which we have won the trust of the electorate." Social Democratic party is among the five-party centre-left coalition, leading the country. The other four parties are also led by women, three of whom are aged under 40.
Marin is against Finland joining NATO
At the age of 34, Marin will join the small bunch of under 40 world leaders, that includes New Zealand's PM Jacinda Ardern (39) and Ukrainian President Oleksiy Honcharuk (35). During Finland's general elections in April, Marin campaigned on the issues of environmental sustainability and equality. She is against Finland joining NATO and wants to phase-out fossil-fuel vehicles.
Raised by a single mother, the 34-year-old has shared about the financial difficulties her family faced. She is the first member of her family to finish high school and later went on to get a university degree. Marin was at the receiving end of stigma and discrimination due to her mother being in a same-sex relationship.
