Free Republic

Finland will leave the European Union and position itself as the Switzerland of the north to protect its independence if Laura Huhtasaari, the presidential candidate of the eurosceptic Finns Party has her way. Finns Party deputy chairman and presidential candidate Laura Huhtasaari poses for a picture at the Finland's Parliament in Helsinki, Finland December 13, 2017. REUTERS/Tuomas Forsell She also told Reuters in an interview she wants to tighten immigration rules. Huhtasaari -- dubbed “Finland’s Marine Le Pen” after France’s National Front leader -- is a long-shot. But she believes she has a real chance in the January election as...

A right wing anti-EU party has enjoyed success in Finland’s election that saw the governing National Coalition suffer a dramatic defeat. After a campaign dominated by domestic issues, the opposition Centre party won 49 seats of the 200 up for election, while the anti-EU Finns Party won 38 and the governing National Coalition won 37. As a party of the populist right, the Finns latches on to voter discontent wherever it can be found. It did so spectacularly in the 2011 elections, where the party (previously known as the True Finns) expanded its vote share by an historic 14.9% vote...