110 years of women's right to vote in Finland – in the 21st century, roughly half of all Finnish ministers are women
110 years ago today women in Finland were given the right to vote and to stand for elected office. In their day, universal suffrage and the Parliament Act of 1906 that enacted a unicameral parliament were progressive.
The first female minister was Deputy Minister of Social Affairs Miina Sillanpää in Prime Minister Väinö Tanner's Government in 1926. The next female ministers came several decades later, however. In the 21st century nearly half of all ministers have been female. Two women have held the office of Prime Minister, Anneli Jäätteenmäki and Mari Kiviniemi.