The political figure of the Prime Minister of Finland, Sanna Marin, has suffered a serious setback in her country as a result of the scandal of the photos and videos of her parties, despite the numerous expressions of solidarity received and the praise for her work as chief of government.
The uproar caused by these images has placed Marin in a delicate political situation, as her public image has worsened and the opposition – especially the far-right True Finns party – accuses her of spending more time partying than solving the country's problems. country.
According to a survey published in the Helsingin Sanomat daily, 42% of Finns admit that their opinion of the prime minister has worsened, while only 9% have a better opinion of her and 46% still think the same as before.
The 36-year-old Social Democrat leader made headlines around the world last week after leaking a video of her singing and dancing at a private party with a group of famous people. Marin voluntarily submitted to a drug test to deny rumors that she had taken narcotics, but the same day that her innocence was proven, a new controversy arose.
The press published a photo of two of Marin's friends kissing almost bare-chested at a party held in early July at the prime minister's official residence, the day after attending a rock festival. Social networks soon coined an ironic nickname, which was later used by some media: Bile-Sanna (Sanna the party girl).
These controversies have taken their toll, first of all, on an emotional level. At a rally of her party, Marin claimed between tears and with a tremulous voice – an unpublished image of her – her right “to joy and fun” and criticized the fact that images of her private life were made public. she. But she has also had a political cost, since her reputation as an efficient prime minister, capable of successfully managing the pandemic or the NATO integration process, has been eroded for reasons unrelated to her government work. .
Marin has been criticized mainly by conservative voters, who are the majority outside the Helsinki metropolitan region, but also by older leftists, a key sector for the Social Democratic Party that she chairs.
Despite the media noise, the young president still has the majority support of the SDP and the other four political groups in the government coalition (the Center Party, the Greens, the Left Alliance and the Swedish People's Party). However, there is no doubt that the recent scandals have affected her leadership within the Executive just seven months before the next general election.
Social Democrats have warned Marin to avoid further scandals, and her coalition partners want public debate to shift from her private life to political proposals. A new scandal could cause her party to withdraw their trust or that one of her government partners decide to break the coalition.
