– Since everyone agrees that we want the best for the municipality, we are rounder at the edges to reach an agreement, says Vilde Athena Berg-Nilsen (SV). In Porsgrunn municipality in Vestfold and Telemark, Labor has hijacked the mayoral chain. A collaboration with SV, Frp, Sp and an electoral technical collaboration with INP makes this possible. But how can the parties in the municipalities work together across ideologies, when it is so unlikely nationally? – Because local politics is more personal. Ideology will not be as decisive, says the 24-year-old. According to Berg-Nilsen, it was political chaos in the municipality that provided the basis for the somewhat unorthodox collaboration. – What the FRP gains, SV does not lose that much in the big picture. There is more agreement between us. There will not be as large cracks. Bjørn Moen (Frp) and Hugo Jacobsen (Ap) will govern together in Lødingen. Photo: Vilde Bratland Erikstad / news Thinks it’s about chemistry Negotiations after this year’s municipal and county council elections continue in many municipalities. Late on Thursday evening, it became known that the Labor Party retains power in Narvik municipality, after a somewhat unexpected collaboration with Rødt, SV and the Progressive Party, where the FRP gets the deputy mayor. In the Nordland municipality of Lødingen, too, political rivals have found their way together. – In Lødingen, we have been quite good at putting ideologies aside and rather thinking about how we can work for the best for the municipality. Then it is not so difficult to cooperate with the Frp, says Hugo Jacobsen (Ap). After the municipal election, it became clear that Jacobsen will continue as mayor. He could do that because his party entered into a collaboration with Bjørn Moen and the Frp. – I have good chemistry with many people in the FRP. Bjørn is one of them. When we got the result we got, we wanted to talk to the Frp to see if we could get a stable and good majority for the time ahead. Bjørn Moen (Frp) believes that politicians at municipal level quickly see who they can manage to work with. – I think we have had a very good collaboration over the past four years. We trust each other. It was easy to choose a collaboration with Ap, says the incoming deputy mayor from Frp. According to an overview from the Municipal report after the municipal elections in 2019, the Labor Party ended up cooperating with the political opposite pole, the Progress Party, in 13 municipalities. 28 of the Center Party’s collaborations included Frp. Truls Gihlemoen (Frp) is the incoming deputy mayor in Stange. Photo: Ole Martin Sponberg / news – It is important to retain identity In Stange municipality in Inlandet, incoming deputy mayor Truls Gihlemoen (Frp) looks forward to a political collaboration with the Labor Party, the Center Party, the Conservative Party and KrF. – We have built trust in each other. We know each other well and know where we are. Gihlemoen says the parties have spent time finding out what they disagree on, so they don’t have to spend time on it later. – In the municipal council, there is agreement on most matters. So we have been clear that all the parties will be allowed to keep their identity. It is important for us to preserve party identity while at the same time creating a new identity through cooperation. Gihlemoen points out that you can take advantage of political differences. – You can, for example, find many joint solutions within health and care, where differences in the parties bring us together. We can use each other’s strengths. But where the parties in the municipalities can benefit from each other, perhaps cooperation across ideology seems unlikely nationally? Election researcher Johannes Bergh hopes the parties in the Storting continue to disagree with each other. Photo: Eivind Molde / news – A small democratic challenge – I think, and I hope, that will not happen. That would create an unclear situation in national politics. At the Storting, the parties take positions on major issues that form lines of conflict. The disagreements should be there, says election researcher Johannes Bergh. Bergh works at the Institute for Social Research. He believes it is easier to be pragmatic in municipal politics. – Differences are important for democracy to function and for voters to decide. In the municipalities, they are not so locked in. Local politics is not so dependent on the big ideological differences – Are the voters aware that when they vote for the FRP in municipal elections, it may end up with a collaboration with Labor, for example? – No, it is not certain. Voters vote for one party, and get something quite different after the election. It creates a small challenge for democracy. Bergh says he has the impression that this type of collaboration is becoming more common, although he has no statistics to support the impression. – Norwegian politics is becoming more fragmented, it is more even between the blocs. Unorthodox constellations can be a solution for creating cooperation. But with cross-cutting cooperation, it can be difficult for voters to understand which ideology actually rules the municipality. – It will be difficult for voters to distinguish between the parties. Another point is that the vast majority of Norwegian municipalities have a model where cooperation between parties and a certain degree of compromise are planned. Frp and Ap in Lødingen in Nordland are ready for four years of cooperation. Photo: Vilde Bratland Erikstad / news The parties will do what is necessary for the Politicians in Lødingen, from the very different parties, say they are close to each other. A lot is about the size of the municipality they live in. – In Lødingen there are small areas. We work for the same thing, the best for people. We want exactly the same things there. Then it is possible that we have slightly different paths to the goal, says Bjørn Moen (Frp). – At local level, there is not that big a difference between Ap and Frp? – Here we really got along. Nationally, there are greater differences. It is about creating development, growth and positivity in society. that is what we are going to work on now, says Hugo Jacobsen (Ap). Mayors throughout the country Map view The mayor’s party in each municipality Map of Norway where each municipality is marked with the party color of the party that has the mayor Not decided yet Select area All of NorwayAgderInlandetMøre and RomsdalNordlandRogalandTroms and FinnmarkTrøndelagVestfold and TelemarkVestlandViken Party Mayors Change Labor Party 98 −52 Høre 84 +51 Center Party 78 −52 Progress Party 14 +11 Christian People’s Party 10 0 Socialist Left Party 3 −3 Liberals 1 −1 Green Party 0 −1 Others 15 −7 The overview shows in how many municipalities each party has been given the mayor. In 54 municipalities, it has not yet been decided who will be mayor. The change shows how many more or fewer mayors the parties have so far, compared to 2019. Last updated 2 October 2023.
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How can SV and FRP govern municipalities together? – news Nordland
