Best Party

Best Party
Besti flokkurinn
Chairman Jón Gnarr
Founded November 2009 (2009)
Headquarters Aðalstræti 9
Ideology Social democracy
Satire
Anarchism
Website
www.bestiflokkurinn.is
Politics of Iceland
Political parties
Elections

The Best Party (Icelandic: Besti flokkurinn) is an Icelandic political party. The party ran in the 2010 city council election in Reykjavík and won the most seats in Reykjavík's City Council, receiving 34.7% of the vote, defeating the Independence Party who received 33.6%.[1][2][3]

The founder and chairman of the party is Jón Gnarr.[4]

Contents

History

Besti Flokkurinn, the Best Party, was founded in 2009 by Jón Gnarr, an Icelandic actor, comedian and writer. The party has from the beginning admitted that it will not honour any of the promises given before elections.[5] It claims all other parties are secretly corrupt, so it promises to be openly corrupt. Among its original goals was to satirize common themes in Icelandic politics, partly by mimicking the standard phrases, idioms and jargon used by Icelandic politicians.

However, it is not a joke party and has shown an interest in governing. It takes a left-wing stance on many issues. Jón Gnarr identifies himself as an anarchist; the party as a whole, however, is closer to the centre-left.[6]

Since its founding, Besti Flokkurinn has developed into a full-grown political party with its own independent agenda, which has yet to be identified to an English-speaking audience. The theme song of Besti Flokkurinn is "Simply The Best" by Tina Turner. Prior to the 2010 election, the party published a new version of the song with new, Iceland-specific lyrics. A music video was also made, featuring Ágústa Eva Erlendsdóttir.[5]

Besti Flokkurinn's Platform

  1. To help the households in the country: Family is the best thing in society. Governments need to meet the needs and demands of households. An ironclad shield wall needs to be raised around the households in this country. Icelandic households deserve only the best.
  2. To improve the quality of life of the Less Fortunate: We want the best of everything for this bunch and therefore offer free access to buses and swimming pools so you can travel around Reykjavik and be clean even if you're poor or there's something wrong with you.
  3. Stop corruption: We promise to stop corruption. We'll accomplish this by participating in it openly.
  4. Equality: Everyone deserves the best regardless of who they are and where they come from. We will do our best for everyone so that everyone can be together on the best team.
  5. Increase transparency: It's best to have everything aboveboard so that the general public knows what is going on. We say we support that.
  6. Effective democracy: Democracy is pretty good, but an effective democracy is best. That's why we want it.
  7. Cancel all debts: We listen to the nation and do as it wishes because the nation knows what's best for itself.
  8. Free bus rides for students and cripples: We can offer more free things than any other party because we aren't going to follow through with it. We could say whatever we want. For example, free flights for women or free cars for people who live in rural areas. It's all the same.
  9. Free dental services for children and handicapped people: This is something that is lacking, and we definitely want to take part in promising it.
  10. Free access to swimming pools for everyone and free towels: This is something that everyone should fall for, and it's the election promise we're most proud of.
  11. Take those responsible for the economic collapse to court: Felt we had to include this.
  12. Complete equality of the sexes
  13. Listen more to women and old people: This bunch gets listened to far too little. It's as if everyone thinks they are just complaining or something. We're going to change that.[7][8][9]

Election 2010

Main article: Reykjavik City Council election, 2010

The party's first endeavor in politics was to present a list of candidates for the local election in Reykjavík in 2010. Its platform included free towels in all city swimming pools, a polar bear for the city zoo, a Disneyland at Vatnsmýri, the capital's airport and a drug-free Althing by 2020. The party won the election, collecting 34.7% of the votes compared to the Independence Party's 33.6%. The party holds six of the fifteen seats on the local council.[3]

Footnotes

  1. ^ "Besti flokkurinn stærstur í Reykjavík". Morgunblaðið. 17 May 2010. http://www.mbl.is/mm/frettir/innlent/2010/05/17/besti_flokkurinn_staerstur_i_reykjavik/. Retrieved 19 May 2010. 
  2. ^ "Kosningavefur Dómsmálaráðuneytisins". Icelandic Ministry of Justice. http://www.kosning.is/sveitarstjornarkosningar/. Retrieved 19 May 2010. 
  3. ^ a b "Best Party wins polls in Iceland's Reykjavik". BBC. 30 May 2010. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/10194757.stm. Retrieved 30 May 2010. 
  4. ^ "Kosningavefur Dómsmálaráðuneytisins". Icelandic Ministry of Justice. http://www.kosning.is/sveitarstjornarkosningar/sveitarfelog/hofudborgarsvaedid/reykjavikurborg/frambod-i-reykjavik/nr/7243. Retrieved 19 May 2010. 
  5. ^ a b Birrell, Ian (24 June 2011). "A joker's party is serious about saving Iceland from meltdown". The Guardian Weekly: p. 3. 
  6. ^ "Icelander’s Campaign Is a Joke, Until He’s Elected". New York Times. 25 June 2010. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/26/world/europe/26iceland.html. 
  7. ^ Best Party Strategy (Icelandic)
  8. ^ Buchan, Peter John R., translator. 2010. "Platform: The Best and Brightest," Harper's Magazine, August: 20.
  9. ^ "Icelandic Politics - Just a Bad Joke?". Raving Ravens. http://www.ravingravens.com/blog/2010/05/icelandic-politics-just-a-bad-joke.html. Retrieved 2010-05-30. 

External links

Parliament (63):
Minor parties: