Sanna Marin may not be a name you’re familiar with, however, on 8th December 2019 she was selected as the Prime Minister of Finland. Marin became the youngest leader of a state or country at thirty-four years old. She was also the youngest Finnish Prime Minister on record, and the country’s third female to take on the role. Though, in 2021 the title was taken away from her when 27 year-old Giacomo Simoncini became the leader of San Marino.
Marin was born on 16 November 1985 in Helsinki, and graduated from university with a Master’s degree in Administrative Science. She took to politics at an early age, joining the Social Democratic Youth in 2010. Her career in politics continued after she graduated from university, where she successfully ran for a position on the City Council of Tampere. In 2015 she was elected to the Finnish Parliament and became an MP for the Social Democratic Party (SDP). Marin worked her way up the ranks, becoming the Minister of Transport and Communication in June 2019. It was only six months after this appointment that she was voted by the SDP to become leader.
Marin’s policies are forward-thinking, and focus around the climate, and social equality. Her government is one of the few that has a majority of female politicians- 12 of the 19 cabinet members are women. She is also passionate about her role of Prime Minister, and bringing attention to current issues.
“I’m in politics because I thought that the older generation wasn’t doing enough about the big issues of the future. I needed to act. I couldn’t just think, It’s somebody else’s job.”
