As of March 1, 2012, Finland found itself with a new president. 

The night of the elections, my S.O. was volunteering as a voting official. By the time his team finished counting and confirming the ballots, we were sure that we would be quite late to Niinistö's elections results party at the Finlandia Talo. The weather was drizzly, cold, and dark. The city seemed quite deserted. The traffic lights plagued our progress, always turning red as we approached. Finally, we arrived, and remarkably had not arrived too late. 

A warm welcome greeted Niinistö and Haukio when they arrived. The whole building filled with applause and cheers. Everyone was all smiles and happiness.

We were all so glad to welcome them. 

I should have written about this already when it happened, but time galloped along, and already a whole month has passed since Niinistö took office. Not all will go smoothly, but I hope the people give him a chance to do his job, and take a moment themselves to step back and remember what a president's work really is.

Congratulations, Niinistö!

*pictures from Yle and Niinistö 

After a long day waiting for the results, the numbers came in relatively fast! Either Haavisto or Niinistö will become Finland's next president. I have to admit that I am pleased to find myself watching an election where both candidates seem to solicit some kind of grudging respect from everyone I have spoken to about them. Neither one is a mud-slinger, neither one participates in hateful campaigning, and both seem overall quite polite. They speak with enthusiasm but calmly. I am intrigued by how the second half of the elections will go, since both candidates are pro Euro(pe) and generally seem to agree on a lot of things! I'm proud of Finns for choosing two candidates who neither inspire hatred nor fear in the general populace against non-Finns. We shall see how the events unfold!

Good luck, Niinistö!

Hakunilan Kokoomus ry:n hallitus on järjestäytyntyt kaudelle 2012. Uusi hallitus ryhtyy työhönsä tavoitteenaan hyvin koordinoitu, innostunut ja innostava Kokoomuslainen politiikka Hakunilan alueella. Kauden 2012 aikana järjestetään presidentinvaalit ja kunnallisvaalit. Erityisesti kunnallisvaaleissa hallitus pyrkii nostamaan yhdistyksen alueella Kokoomuksen näkyvyyttä ja kasvattamaan merkittävästi Hakunilan seudun Kokoomuslaisten ehdokkaiden yhteistä äänimäärää. Lisäksi tarkoituksena on jatkaa edellisellä kaudella aloitettua aktiivista tiedotusta ja järjestää mielenkiintoisia jäsen- ja telttatapahtumia.

Yhdistyksen hallitus kaudelle 2012 on
Vesa Pajula, puheenjohtaja
Eeva Wetterstand-Pihola, varapuheenjohtaja
Mikko Ravi, hallituksen sihteeri
Teuvo Puolakka, vaalivastaava
Jussi Lahti, rahastonhoitaja
Mervi Luomaniemi
Meiju Suvas-Berger
Sauli Paalijärvi