Republic of Iceland: President, 25 June 2016

At stake in this election:

• The office of the President of the Iceland

Description of government structure:

• Chief of State: President Ólafur Ragnar GRÍMSSON (since 1 August 1996)
• Head of Government: Acting Prime Minister Sigurður Ingi JÓHANNSSON (since 5 April 2016)[1]
• Assembly: Iceland has a unicameral Alþingi (parliament) composed of 63 seats, with members serving 4-year terms.

Description of electoral system:

• The president is directly elected by simple majority popular vote for a 4-year term. There are no term limits for the president of Iceland.

Note: The office of the president of Iceland is open to all legal residents of Iceland who are eligible to vote in general elections and are at least 35 years of age. Prospective candidates must also secure a list of at least 1,500 referees for their candidacy.

Last Election:

• The last presidential election in Iceland was held on 30 June 2012. Ólafur Ragnar GRÍMSSON won his fifth presidential term, taking 52.8% of the vote. Thóra ARNÓRSDÓTTIR won 33.2% and Ari Trausti GUÐMUNDSSON took 8.6%.

Main candidates in the election:

• Davíð ODDSSON
  • Party: Independence Party/Sjálfstæðisflokkurinn
• Ástþór MAGNÚSSON
  • Party: Democracy Movement/Lýðræðishreyfingin
• Andri Snær MAGNASON
  • Party: Independent
• Elísabet Kristín JÖKULSDÓTTIR
  • Party: Independent
• Halla TÓMASDÓTTIR
  • Party: Independent
• Guðrún Margrét PÁLSDÓTTIR
  • Party: Independent
• Hildur ÞÓRÐARDÓTTIR
  • Party: Independent
• Sturla JÓNSSON
  • Party: Sturla JÓNSSON
• Guðni Th. JÓHANNESSON
  • Party: Independent

Population and number of registered voters:

·         Population: 331,918 (July 2015 est.)

·         Registered Voters: 237,957 (2013)

Gender Data:

·         Female Population: 165,575 (July 2015 est.)

·         Is Iceland a signatory to CEDAW: Yes (24 July 1980)

·         Has Iceland ratified CEDAW: Yes (18 June 1985)

·         Gender Quota: No

·         Female candidates in this election: Yes

·         Number of Female Parliamentarians: 26 (41.27%)

·         Human Development Index Position: 16 (2014)

·         Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI) Categorization: N/A

Disability Data:

·         Is Iceland a signatory to CRPD: Yes (30 March 2007)

·         Has Iceland ratified CRPD: No

·         Population with a disability: 49,788