Sanna Marin

Sanna Mirella Marin(Finnish:[ˈsɑnːɑˈmirelːɑˈmɑriːn];born 16 November 1985) is a Finnish former politician who served asprime minister of Finlandfrom 2019 to 2023 and as the leader of theSocial Democratic Party of Finland(SDP) from 2020 to 2023. She was aMember of Parliamentfrom 2015 to 2023. She was re-elected as member of parliament in April 2023 but resigned to become a strategic adviser on political leaders' reform programmes in theTony Blair Institutein September 2023.
Marin was born inHelsinkibut as a child moved with her mother toTampere, where she later graduated from theUniversity of Tamperein 2017. She joined theSocial Democratic Youthin 2006, later serving as itsvice presidentfrom 2010 to 2012. She served as a member of the City Council of Tampere and was later elected member of Parliament. FollowingAntti Rinne's resignation in the wake of thepostal strike controversy, Marin was selected as prime minister on 8 December 2019. Taking office at the age of 34, she was the youngest person to hold the office in Finnish history.
As prime minister, Marin led the response to theCOVID-19 pandemicby invoking astate of emergency. She condemned the2022 Russian invasion of Ukraineand has been a vocal supporter ofUkraine. Together with presidentSauli Niinistö, she announced that Finland would apply forNATO membershipin May 2022; Finland successfully joined NATO in April 2023. In the2023 parliamentary election, her party lost its status as the largest party, coming in as third in vote and seat share, and she was succeeded as prime minister byPetteri Orpoof theNational Coalition Party. She was the leader of the SDP until September 2023, when she retired from Finnish politics.
Sanna Mirella Marin was born on 16 November 1985 inHelsinki.She also lived inEspooandPirkkalabefore moving toTampere.Her parents separated when she was very young; the family faced financial problems and Marin's father, Lauri Marin, struggled with alcoholism. After her biological parents separated, Marin was brought up by her mother and her mother's female partner.
Marin graduated from the Pirkkala High School (Pirkkalan Yhteislukio) in 2004 at the age of 19.She then worked in a bakery and as a cashier, among other jobs, while studying (2007–2017),graduating with a Bachelor's degree (2012) and then a Master's degree (2017) in Administrative Science from theUniversity of Tampere.
Marin's political career was described by theBBCas "beginning at the age of 20",in the years following her high school graduation and beginning her affiliation with theSocial Democratic Youth.Marin joined the Social Democratic Youth in 2006 and served as its firstdirectorfrom 2010 to 2012.
In 2008,she unsuccessfully ran for election to the City Council of Tampere, but stood again and was elected in the2012 elections.She became chairwoman of the City Council within months, serving from 2013 to 2017.In2017, she was re-elected to the City Council.She first gained prominence after video clips of her chairing contentious meetings were shared on YouTube.
Marin was elected second deputy chairman of the SDP in 2014.In2015, she was elected to the Finnish Parliament as an MP from theelectoral district of Pirkanmaa.Four years later, she wasre-elected.On 6 June 2019, she becameMinister of Transport and Communications.On 23 August 2020, Marin was elected chair of the SDP, succeeding Antti Rinne.
In December 2019, Marin was nominated by the SDP to succeed Antti Rinne as the Prime Minister of Finland,but Rinne formally remained party leader until June 2020.In a narrow vote, Marin prevailed overAntti Lindtman. A majority of the ministers in her five-partycabinetare women, numbering 12 out of 19 at the time of the cabinet's formation.She is the third and longest-serving female head of government in Finland, afterAnneli JäätteenmäkiandMari Kiviniemi.
Upon her confirmation by theFinnish parliamentat the age of 34, she became Finland's youngest-ever Prime Minister,making her the then youngest serving head of government untilSebastian Kurzregained that description in January 2020.
During the globalCOVID-19 pandemicin 2020, theMarin Cabinetinvoked astate of emergencyin Finland toalleviate the epidemic.When Swedish Prime MinisterStefan Löfvencould not attend aEuropean Council meetingin October 2020 because of his mother's funeral, Marin stepped in to represent Sweden.In return, Marin asked Löfven to represent Finland at a Council meeting later that month.
Marin's SDP came third in the2023 Finnish parliamentary election.She announced that she would resign as leader of SDP at the party congress, to be held in autumn.She was succeeded byPetteri Orpoas prime minister of Finland on 20 June 2023.
In March 2021, Marin condemned thepersecutionof ethnicUyghursin the Chinese province ofXinjiang.She emphasised that "trade or the economy is not a reason to ignore these atrocities".
On 24 February 2022,Russian presidentVladimir Putinordered theinvasion of Ukraine. On 25 February, a Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson threatened Finland and Sweden with "military and political consequences" if they attempted to joinNATO, which neither were then actively seeking. Both countries had attended an emergency NATO summit as members of NATO'sPartnership for Peaceand both had condemned the invasion and had provided assistance to Ukraine.
In February, following the2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, Marin commented on Finland's potential membership, observing: "It is also now clear that the debate on NATO membership in Finland will change", while noting that a Finnish application to NATO would require widespread political and public support.
In March 2022, she said the EU needed to end itsdependency on Russian oil, adding that "we have these very tough economic sanctions on the one hand, and on the other hand we are financing the Russian war by buying oil, natural gas and otherfossil fuelsfrom Russia."
On 4 March 2022,President of FinlandSauli Niinistövisited Washington, D.C. to meet with PresidentJoe Bidenand a number of other U.S. politicians and security personnel. In a press conference with Finnish media, Niinistö said that in the meeting the presidents discussed the Russian invasion ofUkraineand its impact onEuropeanand Finnish security. Furthermore they agreed on deepening Finnish-US security co-operation and bilateral relations.On 26 May 2022, Marin went toKyivat the invitation of Ukrainian Prime MinisterDenys Shmyhal,where she met PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyyand visited the war-torn cities ofIrpinandBucha. On 26 May 2022, Marin also signed a bilateral framework agreement on the rebuilding of Ukraine's education with Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.On 31 May, she welcomed a deal agreed by all EU leaders to ban more than 90% ofRussian oil importsby the end of the year, voting for it in the European Council.
In late November and early December 2022, Marin visited New Zealand and Australia, becoming the first Finnish prime minister to visit the two countries. She met with New Zealand Prime MinisterJacinda Ardernand Australian Prime MinisterAnthony Albanese, and covered several issues including bilateral trade relations, the global economic situation, the Russian invasion of Ukraine andclimate changemitigation.
On 10 March 2022, Marin said Finland could discuss transferringF/A-18 Hornetsto Ukraine, subject to international cooperation, training requirements and Finland's own security situation.Finnish PresidentSauli Niinistödenied any discussions over the issue. The Finnish Defence MinisterAntti Kaikkonensaid that the Hornets would be required for the foreseeable future.Marin re-iterated her call for a fighter aircraft discussion as "the next big question" after main battle tanks, stating that Ukraine's defense against Russia requires heavier weaponry.She emphasized that Finland has no position on the issue yet.
Sanna Marin's attitude, as the vice chairman of SDP, was negative towards Finland joiningNATOand pro-NATO statement by Finnish Defence Minister Carl Haglund after Russia conquered Crimea in 2014.That time the attitude for Finland to join NATO was negative, both among the government and majority of the citizens.Marin's attitude changed along with foreign political trends.During her year address at the beginning of 2022, in response to Russian aggression at the Russo-Ukrainian border, Marin stated that Finland had the right to join NATO if it wanted to, and should consider this option. This statement was responded to by some Russian media outlets with the phrase: "Moscow was stabbed in the back".On 12 May 2022, ten weeks after the beginning of the invasion, President Niinistö and Prime Minister Marin in a joint statement said that "Finland must apply for NATO membership without delay" as such membership "would strengthen Finland's security".On 15 May 2022, Niinistö and Marin announced thatFinland would apply for NATO membership, and on 17 May the Finnish parliament approved the proposal in a vote of 188–8.On 16 May 2022, Marin underlined that they are always ready for dialogue withTurkeyregarding NATO membership and that the problem will be resolved as soon as possible.Marin said she was surprised by Turkey'soppositionto Finland's NATO membership.She said her country did not want permanent NATO bases ornuclear weaponson its territory.During Marin's term as prime minister, Finland became a member of NATO on 4 April 2023.
In October 2020, an interview of Marin in the Finnish lifestyle magazineTrendiabout her job and its expectations was illustrated by a photograph in which she wore a low-cut trouser suit with no shirt underneath. It generated much public debate when others accused her of demeaning her office, while others admired and defended her by accusing critics of sexism.
On 25 May 2021, Finnish media reported that Marin and her family were spending about €300 per month on groceries with public funds as a part of the Prime Minister's tax-free housing benefits in the official residence,Kesäranta. The legality of the customary arrangement that had been in place for decades was questioned since the rules on the residential benefits did not explicitly mention food provisions.However, previous prime ministers have not necessarily used residential benefits at all, and to this extent only one other social democratic prime minister.Later, the amount spent was found to be €850 per month, not the €300 first thought.Marin and her family had used around €14,363.20 on catering services in the form of breakfast provisions and cold evening meals in the Prime Minister's official residence between January 2020 and May 2021, equivalent to €845 per month.She stated that she did not know the limit, and she also did not know that residential benefits must be declared in taxes, which is routine in Finland for ordinary taxpayers.It turned out that civil servants in thePrime Minister's Office(VNK) handled the payments and Marin was not informed of the running costs of the residential perk. Marin's family have resided in the Kesäranta residence unusually much for a Prime Minister due to the restrictions and practicalities during the pandemic.Marin has since then repaid her family's meal expenses to the Finnish state.With the controversy over spending on groceries, Marin had to dispel speculation that public money had also been spent on her wedding, saying that she and her husband "paid for all our wedding expenses ourselves".The Office of theChancellor of Justicecleared Marin of illegalities in its legal opinion in December 2022, and stated that she had the right to trust the civil servants whom the Office rebuked for unlawful actions.
In early December 2021, Marin visited a night club in Helsinki with some friends; earlier that day she had been in contact with Finland's foreign minister, who subsequently tested positive forCOVID-19, thus exposing the Prime Minister to the infection. Marin was informed of this and advised by an Undersecretary of State that she did not need to self-isolate, as she was fully vaccinated. Later that night two text messages were sent to Marin's governmental work phone alerting her that she should self-isolate after all. However, Marin didn't receive the messages because she was only carrying her parliamentary work phone, even though according to the instructions of the Government, reachability is precisely the duty of the minister;the governmental work phone has different security restrictions for its usage. Apparently there was a failure to check whether she had received the update, and therefore no messages to her parliamentary phone. The phone camera video of Marin in the night club published by the magazine that broke the story,Seiska, shows Marin on the dance floor checking her smartwatch for messages.
According to Marin, she had been told that going out in public was permitted due to her having been fully vaccinated. The next day she received information that this was not the case, so she explained missing the updated advice and apologised for her poor judgement on Facebook.Two complaints about Marin's behaviour were filed to theChancellor of Justice, who subsequently exonerated her.Prominent members of theCentre Party, a partner in Marin's five-party coalition government, alleged that Marin had lied to them by altering her explanations of the events; however, they did not provide evidence of where this occurred.
In August 2022,leakedvideos of Marin partying and dancing in an apartment in Helsinki became public,andwent viral.In response to what Marin called "serious allegations in the public domain" regarding drug use,she voluntarily took a drug test on 19 August "for [her] own legal protection [and] to clear up any doubts"and tested negative.There was further controversy after an image of Marin's friends from a party in the prime minister's official residence were leaked depicting two topless women kissing with a "Finland" sign covering their breasts.Marin apologised for the image and called it "not appropriate".
In October 2022, Marin apologised to the IndigenousSámi peoplefor the delays in the reform of the Sámi human rights legislation.The legislation has been in the making for three parliamentary terms without success.In Marin's cabinet, the law has been repeatedly blocked by theCentre Party.Marin stated that she would bring the legislation for a parliamentary vote even without Centre Party support.In November, ministers voted 11–3 to send the legislation to the Finnish Parliament.On 24 February 2023, the constitutional law committee voted 9–7 to suspend work on the bill, preventing the legislation from being passed before the2023 Finnish parliamentary election.In the committee vote, the Centre Party voted with the conservative opposition to block the Sámi Parliament Act. In an interview onYkkösaamu, Marin expressed her disappointment in the bill's failure.
On 2 April 2023, Marin conceded defeat to her center-right rivals, theNational Coalition, led byPetteri Orpo, as her party came in third in the2023 Finnish parliamentary election, behind Orpo'sNCPand the nationalistsFinns, led byRiikka Purra.Despite her party falling to third place, the SDP still managed to pick up three seats in the election and increased its overall vote share.Marin was re-elected with aPirkanmaadistrict record of 35,623 votes.
On 5 April 2023, Marin announced that she would resign as the leader of the Social Democratic Party at the next party congress in the autumn.She was succeeded byAntti Lindtmanon 1 September 2023.
In June 2023, Marin founded a company MA/PI Oy. In addition to public speaking, the company's industries include publishing and consulting. In July, Marin was listed as a speaker on the lists of the US-based Harry Walker Agency, which arranges "keynote and motivational speakers" for international events.
In August 2023, Marin askedJutta Urpilainento beSocial Democratic Party's candidate for the 2024 presidential election of Finland.
On 7 September 2023, Marin announced her intention to resign as an MP and take up a position as a strategic advisor at theTony Blair Institute for Global Change. On 12 September 2023 her application for resignation from the Finnish Parliament was approved.
On 28 September 2023, it was reported that she had signed withtalent agencyRange Media Partners for film, TV, audio and brand collaborations.
In January 2024, Marin started working in a new steering committeeInternational Task Force on Security and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine. According to a statement released by the Ukrainian president's office, the steering committee's primary objective is to develop a strategy for Ukraine's closer engagement with the Euro-Atlantic security area. The group is led by its foundersAndriy Yermak, Chief of Staff of the President of Ukraine and former Nato Secretary-GeneralAnders Fogh Rasmussen. In addition to them, 15 former European and North American heads of state, diplomats and officers (includingBoris JohnsonandHillary Clinton) are members of the group.
Marin describes herself as coming from a "rainbow family",as she was raised bytwo female parents.She was the first person in her family to attend university.
Marin has a daughter born in 2018 with her former partnerTPVMarkus Räikkönen.In August 2020, Marin and Räikkönen, who works in communications, married at the Prime Minister's official residence,Kesäranta.Their permanent residence was in theKaleva districtofTampere,but during theCOVID-19 pandemic, they resided at Kesäranta.The couple filed for divorce in May 2023, after 19 years together.
Marin is avegetarian.
Marin was on the list of the BBC's100 Womenannounced on 23 November 2020.On 9 December 2020, she was selected byForbesto rank 85th on the list ofThe World's 100 Most Powerful Women.In 2020 she became aYoung Global Leaderof the World Economic Forum.Marin was selected for the cover ofTimemagazine's "Time100 Next" theme issue, which showcases one hundred influential leaders from around the world.In the December 2022Financial Timesselected Marin on the 25 most influential women list.
The French magazineMarie Claireranked Marin as one of the most influential women in its "1st Annual Power List".The German newspaperBildhas praised Marin as the "coolest politician in the world".In 2022, TheAustralian Broadcasting Corporationsaid Marin was an icon of progressive leadership.
Domestically, Marin received the Grand Cross of theOrder of the White Rose of Finland.As Finland’s prime minister Marin was awarded aDoctor of Humane Letters, honoris causa atNew York University.