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Slide 1 of 23![Sanna Marin lähikuvassa.]()
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Slide 2 of 23![Sanna Marin katsoo vasemmalle ja hymyilee.]()
Sanna Marin's political career began at Tampere city council in 2009. She was elected to Parliament in 2015.
Markku Pitkänen / Yle
Slide 3 of 23![Sanna Marin ja Antti Lindtman halaavat.]()
Marin became Prime Minister, after her predecessor, Antti Rinne, was forced to step down in 2019. She defeated MP Antti Lindtman 32-29 in a vote of the SDP party council.
Kimmo Brandt / AOP
Slide 4 of 23![Li Andersson, Katri Kulmuni, Sanna Marin, Anna-Maja Henriksson ja Maria Ohisalo seisovat rivissä vierekkäin.]()
Sanna Marin's women-led cabinet attracted the attention of international media.
Her government took office on 10 December 2019. A little over a month later, the first Covid-19 infection was confirmed in Finland.
Jari Kovalainen / Yle
Slide 5 of 23![Sanna Marin seisoo puhujanpöntön takana. Taustalla näkyy grafiikkaa koronatilanteesta.]()
Petteri Bülow / Yle
In an unprecedented move, Marin's government announced the closure of Finland's borders, schools and libraries, as infections started to soar.
Slide 6 of 23![Sanna Marin ja Ursula von der Leyen laittavat kyynärpäänsä yhteen. Molemmilla on kasvomaskit.]()
Finland spent heavily in an effort to keep the pandemic-affected economy alive, as did the rest of Europe.
Marin's government was involved in approving an EU-wide €750bn rescue package.
Dursun Aydemir / AOP
Slide 7 of 23![Sanna Marin lähikuvassa, kasvomaski kasvoillaan.]()
The coronavirus pandemic forced Marin's government to change its plans. The state supported businesses with subsidies that were funded by borrowing.
Silja Viitala / Yle
Slide 8 of 23![Sanna Marin sivuprofiilissa, katsoo alaspäin.]()
Just as the pandemic crisis began to fade, Marin's government was faced with another: in February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine.
Petteri Sopanen / Yle
Slide 9 of 23![Sanna Marin ja Volodymyr Zelenskyi kävelevät portaita ylös vierekkäin.]()
On the first day of the invasion, Marin took to Twitter to express Finland's support for Ukraine.
"Finland expresses its solid support to Ukraine and Ukrainians and we are looking for ways to increase this support," Marin wrote.
This unequivocal stance further increased international media attention on Marin.
Ukrainan presidentin kanslia / Lehtikuva
Slide 10 of 23![Sanna Marin seisoo väkijoukon keskellä. Hänellä on yllään luotiliivi ja ulkoiluvaatteet.]()
Marin visited Ukraine on several occasion, including the city of Bucha, where Russian troops have reportedly committed war crimes.
Irpinin kaupunginhallitus
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7.10.2022
Slide 12 of 23![Sanna Marin kävelee huoneen halki. Hänen takanaan samaan suuntaan kävelee Sauli Niinistö.]()
Marin had said in January 2022 that it was "very unlikely" that Finland would apply for Nato membership, at least during her current term in office.
As we now know, things turned out differently.
Silja Viitala / Yle
Slide 13 of 23![Sanna Marin ja Jens Stoltenberg puhuvat mikrofoneihin.]()
Marin has since said that she began supporting Finland joining Nato long before Russia launched its attack.
Petteri Sopanen / Yle
Slide 14 of 23![Puhelin, jonka ruudulla näkyy Sanna Marinin instagram-tili.]()
Marin has also been an exceptionally active social media user as Prime Minister, amassing over one million followers on Instagram.
Jouni Immonen / Yle
Slide 15 of 23![Sanna Marin seisoo ulkona ja katsoo sivuun. Hänellä on yllään musta nahkatakki.]()
Marin has also drawn media attention for her fasion sense, as when she wore this leather jacket for a trip to Sweden. Her style has been praised by Vogue, among others.
AOP
Slide 16 of 23![Sanna Marin seisoo väkijoukossa ja puhuu toimittajan ojentamaan mikrofoniin.]()
Marin also made it to Time magazine's 100 Next list, an an annually-published index of "emerging leaders who are shaping the future."
Silja Viitala / Yle
Slide 17 of 23![Kuvakaappaus somevideosta, jossa Sanna Marin tanssii ystäviensä kanssa.]()
The attention has not always been positive. In the summer of 2022, leaked videos showing her dancing with celebrity friends prompted some to question her decisions about her free time as Prime Minister.
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18.8.2022
Slide 19 of 23![Sanna Marin seisoo auringonpaisteessa.]()
Marin also had a lot of defenders, who felt that the Prime Minister should be able to party and dance in her free time.
Esa Syväkuru / Yle
Slide 20 of 23![Sanna Marin on väkijoukossa ja ottaa selfietä muutaman nuoren kanssa.]()
Under Marin, the SDP increased its support in the 2023 parliamentary elections, winning 43 seats. That left it trailing the National Coalition and the Finns Party, however.
Sakari Piippo / Yle
Slide 21 of 23![Sanna Marin nostaa kukkakimppua ilmaan ja hymyilee.]()
The coronavirus pandemic and Russia's war on Ukraine caused Finland's state debt to increase. Marin's handling of the economy has been criticised by opposition parties.
Benjamin Suomela / Yle
Slide 22 of 23![Sanna Marin kävelee kohti pöytää, jolla on eri medioiden mikrofoneja.]()
On 5 April, Marin announced she would step down as leader of the Social Democrats.
A new leader will be elected at the next party congress in September.
Silja Viitala / Yle
Slide 23 of 23![Lähikuva Sanna Marinista katsomassa vasemmalle.]()
Published: 6.4.2022
Journalists: Laura Kangas ja Linda Pelkonen
Translated by: Veronica Kontopoulou
Silja Viitala / Yle
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