Iceland: Parliament, 29 October 2016

At stake in this election:

• 63 seats in the Alþingi (Parliament)

Description of government structure:

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

Description of electoral system:

• Members of Parliament are directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote to serve 4-year terms.

Last Election:

• Elections for Parliament were last held on 27 April 2013. In the last elections, the Independence Party and the Progressive Party each won 19 seats, the Social Democratic Alliance won 9, the Left-Green Movement won 7, Bright Future won 6 and the Pirate Party won 3.

Main parties in the election:

• Independence Party/Sjálfstæðisflokkurinn
  • Leader: Bjarni BENEDIKTSSON
  • Seats won in last election: 19
• Pirate Party/Píratar
  • Leader: Birgitta JÓNSDÓTTIR
  • Seats won in last election: 3
• Left-Green Movement/Vinstrihreyfingin – Grænt Framboð
  • Leader: Katrín JAKOBSDÓTTIR
  • Seats won in last election: 7
• Regeneration Party/Viðreisn
  • Leader: Benedikt JÓHANNESSON
  • Seats won in last election: 0
• Social Democratic Alliance/Samfylkingin
  • Leader: Oddný Guðbjörg HARÐARDÓTTIR
  • Seats won in last election: 9
• Progressive Party/Framsóknarflokkurinn
  • Leader: Sigurður Ingi JÓHANNSSON
  • Seats won in last election: 19
• Bright Future/Björt Framtíð
  • Leader: Óttarr PROPPÉ
  • Seats won in last election: 6

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

·         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