At the same time some local electoral commissions decided to change the time of voting – for example, some polling stations will work from 12:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
A total of 12 parties are participating in the race for 63 seats in the unicameral national parliament, Althing.
The last election took place on April 27, 2013. The current parliament has six sitting parties. The ruling coalition is formed by the Progressive and Independence Parties. The opposition is represented by the Social Democratic Alliance, the Left Green Movement, the Bright Future Party and the Pirate Party.
The spotlight is on the Pirate Party. The party was established only in 2012, but managed to get into the parliament gaining 3 seats during the 2013 elections. It gained momentum in April, when thousands of angry Icelanders took to the streets after the release of the Panama Papers revealing a corruption in Prime Minister Sigmundur David Gunnlaugsson’s government. These protests led to his resignation and new elections.
Polls predict the party is poised to win the parliamentary elections or at least finish second. Just a day before the elections, the party was slightly behind the center-right Independence Party enjoying the support of about 20 percent of voters, which is still a strong chance to win the elections.
