A fresh poll suggests that Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja (SDP) would be a more popular choice as Prime Minister after the upcoming elections than Finance Minister Eero Heinäluoma, the chairman of the Social Democratic Party.
The poll, commissioned by the Tampere-based newspaper Aamulehti, found that 38 per cent of respondents felt that Tuomioja would be the best potential prime minister that the Social Democratic Party would have to offer. Heinäluoma got 24 per cent support.
In the opposition National Coalition Party, Sauli Niinistö, was preferred by 60 per cent of respondents, while the party’s chairman Jyrki Katainen was seen as the party’s best option only by 18 per cent.
Centre Party leader, incumbent Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen has no challengers within his party; 74 per cent see him as the Centre’s best candidate.
Respondents to the poll were asked whom they thought would be the best candidates of each party for Prime Minister. For the survey, the Taloustutkimus market research agency interviewed more than 1,000 people in early February. The margin of error is three percentage points.
