Tampere, May 25, 2026 – The Europe Today: Finland’s Social Democratic Party (SDP) has elected Nasima Razmyar, Niina Malm, and Pinja Perholehto as its deputy leaders, concluding key leadership decisions at the party’s congress in Tampere as it prepares for the next parliamentary elections.
Razmyar received the highest number of votes and retained her position as first deputy leader, while Malm was re-elected as second deputy leader. Perholehto entered the top leadership team as the new third deputy leader following the three-day congress.
The vote came after delegates had already re-elected party leader Antti Lindtman and party secretary Mikkel Näkkäläjärvi without opposition.
According to official results, Razmyar secured 904 votes, Malm received 745, and Perholehto obtained 625. MPs Juha Viitala and Jani Kokko failed to win seats in the deputy leadership contest.
The outcome further strengthens Razmyar’s position within the party. Born in Afghanistan, she arrived in Finland as a child refugee, entered parliament in 2015, and later served as Helsinki’s deputy mayor after temporarily leaving national politics.
Following her re-election, Razmyar expressed confidence in the party’s electoral prospects, saying: “We are not bowing down. We will win the elections.”
She also joked on stage during celebrations, addressing Lindtman with a light remark: “How will you manage now, Antti?”
Niina Malm, a second-term MP from Imatra, focused her campaign on workers’ rights and opposition to the current government’s labour policies. Before entering politics, she worked at the Ovako steelworks as a crane operator and shop steward, and she called for clearer political communication, saying: “Politics should be spoken in Finnish, not only in complicated terms.”
Pinja Perholehto, 29, becomes the youngest member of SDP’s senior leadership. A lawmaker from Hyvinkää, she rose through student politics and trade union involvement, and emphasized themes of solidarity and social mobility.
Speaking to delegates, Perholehto said: “A state can be economically stable but humanly broken,” highlighting concerns over social inequality and inclusion.
The congress also featured remarks from Swedish Social Democratic leader and former prime minister Magdalena Andersson, who warned about rising gang violence in Sweden and urged social democrats to present credible alternatives to crime and authoritarian politics.
Party secretary Näkkäläjärvi said SDP membership has grown to around 28,000, with about 2,000 new members joining over the past year, although overall growth remained modest due to attrition.
The SDP currently leads several national opinion polls and is positioning itself for a return to government in Finland’s upcoming parliamentary elections.
