Finnish voters threw out their center-right coalition government and gave the Social Democrats their biggest election victory since World War II.
But the gains weren't enough to guarantee the left-leaning Social Democrats a majority and the election is not expected to change politics much in a country dominated by coalition governments for five decades.The defeat Sunday of Prime Minister Esko Aho's coalition followed four years of unpopular welfare cuts during Finland's worst recession in half a century.
Aho indicated his Center Party was ready to form a new government with the Social Democrats and his main government partner, the Conservative Party. "We should not rule out a wide government base," he said.
In Sunday's election, the Social Democrats became Finland's largest party with 63 seats in the 200-member Parliament, an increase of 15 from the previous election.