Politics of the Faroe Islands

Politics of the Faroe Islands
Constitution Constitution Act of Succession Freedom of Speech and the Press Taxation
The Crown Monarch Queen Margrethe II Crown Prince Frederik Royal Family Privy Council Purveyors to the Royal Court
The unity of the Realm  Kingdom of Denmark  Faroe Islands  Denmark  Greenland
Executive Regeringen The Government of Denmark High Commissioner (list) Lene Moyell Johansen Landsstýri The Government of the Faroe Islands Premier Aksel V. Johannesen Deputy Premier Høgni Hoydal Johannesen Cabinet Privy Council Council of State Queen Margrethe II
Legislature Løgtingið Parliament of the Faroe Islands (35th National Parliament) Speaker Páll á Reynatúgvu Members Folketinget Parliament of the Kingdom of Denmark (69th Kingdom Parliament) Speaker Pia Kjærsgaard Members
Judiciary Supreme Court President Poul Søgaard Courts
Elections Political parties Recent elections Kingdom: 2019 2015 2011 National: 2019 2015 2011 Referendums Alcohol (1907) Independence Alcohol (1973) Act of Succession
Administrative divisions Regions Municipalities Towns
Foreign relations : Jenis av Rana Diplomatic missions of / to the Faroes Nationality law Passport Visa requirements Visa policy Arctic policy of the Kingdom Faroe Islands–European Union relations Politics of the European Union Arctic policy of the EU
Related topics Arctic Command Defence Command Politics of Denmark Politics of Greenland Unitarism Home rule
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The politics of the Faroe Islands an autonomous country (Danish: land) of the Kingdom of Denmark, function within the framework of a parliamentary, representative democratic dependency, whereby the Prime Minister of the Faroe Islands is the head of government,^[1] and of a multi-party system. The Faroe Islands are politically associated with the Kingdom of Denmark but have been self-governing since 1948. Executive power is exercised by the government. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the Løgting. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature and the responsibility of Denmark. As of October 25, 2007, the Faroe Islands became one electoral district.

Executive branch[]

The high commissioner is appointed by the Monarch of Denmark. The High Commissioner has a seat in the Løgting, he or she is allowed to speak in the Løgting regarding common Danish/Faroese affairs, but he or she is not allowed to vote.^[2] Following legislative elections, the leader of the party that wins the most seats is usually given the initiative to establish a new coalition by the Faroese Parliament, unless the current Løgmaður (Prime Minister in English) is still in power. However, if he or she fails, the Chairman of the parliament asks all chairmen of the parties elected to the parliament, and asks them to point to another chairman who they feel can rightly form a new coalition. The chairman with the most votes is then handed the initiative. After forming the coalition, the Løgmaður leads the . The landsstýri will often consist of around 7 members. The coalition parties divide the various ministries among themselves and after this, the parties elect their representative to these ministries. Any other member of the cabinet is called a if the person is a man, or landsstýriskvinna if the person is a woman. The word ráðharri is also used for a member of the cabinet, i.e. mentamálaráðharri (minister of culture) or heilsumálaráðharri (minister of health).

Current government[]

Following the 2019 Faroese general election, a new government, consisting of three parties (Union Party, People's Party, and Centre Party) under Prime Minister Bárður á Steig Nielsen^[3] was created

Legislative branch[]

The Faroese Parliament (Løgtingið in Faroese) has 33 MPs (members of parliament), elected for a four-year term by proportional representation.

Election of 2 seats to the Danish Parliament was last held the 5th of June 2019: Social Democrat 1, Unionist 1.

Political parties and elections[]

The Faroe Islands have a multi-party system (disputing on independence and unionism as well as left and right), with numerous parties in which no one party often has a chance of gaining power alone, and parties must work with each other to form coalition governments. The Faroese Parliament (Løgting) has 33 seats. Members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms. For the Løgting elections, there were seven electoral districts, each one comprehending asýslur, while Streymoy is divided into northern and southern parts (Tórshavn region), but since 2008, the Faroes constitute a single district.^[4]

Schematic depiction of the political party spectrum in the Faroe Islands.

• Fólkaflokkurin (A): People's Party
• Sambandsflokkurin (B): Union Party
• Javnaðarflokkurin (C): Social Democratic Party
• Sjálvstýri (D): Self-Government
• Tjóðveldi (E): Republic
• Framsókn (F): Progress
• Miðflokkurin (H): Centre Party

Party		Votes	%	Seats	+/–
	People's Party	8,290	24.54	8	+2
	Social Democratic Party	7,480	22.14	7	–1
	Union Party	6,874	20.35	7	+1
	Republic	6,127	18.14	6	–1
	Centre Party	1,815	5.37	2	0
	Progress	1,559	4.62	2	0
	Self-Government	1,157	3.43	1	–1
	Cannabis Initiative	310	0.92	0	New
	Faroese Party	167	0.49	0	New
Total		33,779	100.00	33	0
Valid votes		33,779	99.56
Invalid/blank votes		150	0.44
Total votes		33,929	100.00
Registered voters/turnout		37,827	89.70
Source: KVF

Administrative divisions[]

The islands are administratively divided into 29 municipalities with about 120 cities and villages.

Traditionally, there are also the 6 sýslur (Norðoyar, Eysturoy, Streymoy, Vágar, Sandoy, and Suðuroy). Sýsla means district and although it is only a police district today, it is still commonly understood as a geographical region. In earlier times, each sýsla had its own ting, the so-called várting (spring ting).

International affairs[]

The nation continues to be intimately tied with the Nordic countries of Europe and the European Union.

Mission of the Faroe Islands in Reykjavik, Iceland

Along with diplomatic missions to Iceland, the Court of St. James's (United Kingdom), Russia, and the European Union,^[5] the Faroe Islands participate in the Nordic Council, NIB, International Maritime Organization, International Whaling Commission (Complete list of participation of the Faroe Islands in international organisations).

Further reading[]

See also[]

• Cabinet of the Faroe Islands
• List of lawmen and prime ministers of the Faroe Islands
• Politics of Denmark
• List of High Commissioners of the Faroe Islands

References[]

External links[]

• Prime Minister’s Office