The president of Iceland ( is, Forseti Íslands) is the

head of state A head of state (or chief of state) is the public persona who officially embodies a state Foakes, pp. 110–11 " he head of statebeing an embodiment of the State itself or representatitve of its international persona." in its unity and l ...

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

. The incumbent is Guðni Thorlacius Jóhannesson, who is now in his second term as president, elected in 2016 and re-elected in 2020.

Vigdís Finnbogadóttir Vigdís Finnbogadóttir (; born 15 April 1930) is an Icelandic politician who served as the fourth president of Iceland from 1980 to 1996. She was the world's first woman who was democratically elected as president. With a presidency of exact ...

assumed Iceland's presidency on 1 August 1980, she made history as the first elected female head of state in the world. The president is elected to a four-year term by popular vote, is not term-limited, and has limited powers. The presidential residence is situated in Bessastaðir in

Garðabær Garðabær () is a municipality in the Capital Region of Iceland. History Garðabær is a growing town in the Capital Region. It is the sixth largest town in Iceland with a population of 13,872 (Sept 1, 2013). The site of Garðabær has been in ...

, near the capital city

Reykjavík Reykjavík ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland, on the southern shore of Faxaflói bay. Its latitude is 64°08' N, making it the world's northernmost capital of a sovereign state. With a po ...

Origin

When Iceland became a republic in 1944 by the passing of a new constitution the position of King of Iceland was simply replaced by the president of Iceland. A transitional provision of the new constitution stipulated that the first president be elected by the Parliament.

Etymology

The term for ''president'' in Icelandic is ''forseti''. The word ''

forseti Forseti (Old Norse "the presiding one", "president" in modern Icelandic and Faroese) is the god of justice and reconciliation in Norse mythology. He is generally identified with Fosite, a god of the Frisians. Name Grimm took ''Forseti'', "''pr ...

'' means ''one who sits foremost'' (''sá sem fremst situr'') in

Old Norse Old Norse, Old Nordic, or Old Scandinavian, is a stage of development of North Germanic dialects before their final divergence into separate Nordic languages. Old Norse was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and their overseas settlemen ...

/ Icelandic or literally ''fore-sitter''. It is the name of one of the

Æsir The Æsir (Old Norse: ) are the gods of the principal pantheon in Norse religion. They include Odin, Frigg, Höðr, Thor, and Baldr. The second Norse pantheon is the Vanir. In Norse mythology, the two pantheons wage war against each other, ...

, the god of justice and reconciliation in Norse mythology. He is generally identified with Fosite, a god of the Frisians.

Powers and duties

Executive powers

Cabinet

The president appoints ministers to the Cabinet of Iceland, determines their number and division of assignments. Ministers are not able to resign and must be discharged by the president. The ministers are delegated the president's executive powers and are solely responsible for their actions. In the aftermath of general elections, the president has the role to designate a party leader (the one that the president considers most likely to be able to form a majority coalition government) to formally start negotiations to form a government.

Sveinn Björnsson Sveinn Björnsson (; 27 February 1881 – 25 January 1952) was the first president of Iceland (1944–1952). Background, education and legal career Sveinn was born in Copenhagen, Denmark as the son of Björn Jónsson (editor and later minister) ...

and

Ásgeir Ásgeirsson Ásgeir Ásgeirsson (; 13 May 1894 – 15 September 1972) was the second president of Iceland, from 1952 to 1968. He was a Freemason and served as Grand Master of the Icelandic Order of Freemasons. Early life and education Educated as a th ...

played highly active roles in the formation of governments, attempting to set up governments that suited their political preferences, whereas Kristján Eldjárn and

were passive and neutral as to individuals and parties comprising the government.

State Council

The president and the Cabinet meet in the State Council. The Cabinet must inform the president of important matters of the state and drafted bills. During meetings the Cabinet may also suggest convening, adjourning or dissolving the Parliament.

Prosecution and pardoning

The president can decide that the prosecution for an offense be discontinued and can also grant pardon and amnesty.

Legislative powers

Article 2 of the constitution states that the president and the Parliament jointly exercise the legislative power. The president signs bills passed by the Parliament into law and can choose not to sign them, thus in effect

veto A veto is a legal power to unilaterally stop an official action. In the most typical case, a president or monarch vetoes a bill to stop it from becoming law. In many countries, veto powers are established in the country's constitution. Veto ...

ing them. Bills vetoed by the president still take effect, should the Parliament not withdraw them, but they must be confirmed in a referendum. Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson (who served 1996–2016) is the only president to have vetoed legislation from Parliament, having done so only on three occasions (2004, 2010, 2011). This power was originally intended to be used only in extremely extenuating circumstances. The president has the power to submit bills and resolutions to the Parliament which it must take under consideration. Should the Parliament not be in session the president can issue provisional laws which must conform with the constitution. Provisional laws become void if the Parliament does not confirm them when it convenes. No president has ever submitted bills nor resolutions, nor issued provisional laws. Article 30 of the constitution states that the president can grant exceptions from laws. No president has yet exercised this authority.

Parliament

The president convenes the Parliament after general elections and formally dissolves it. He can temporarily adjourn its sessions and move them if he deems so necessary. Furthermore, the president opens all regular sessions of the Parliament each year.

Ceremonial duties

The president is the designated grand master of the

Order of the Falcon The Order of the Falcon ( is, Hin íslenska fálkaorða) is the only order of chivalry in Iceland, founded by King Christian X of Denmark and Iceland on 3 July 1921. The award is awarded for merit for Iceland and humanity and has five degrees. N ...

Detailed powers

https://www.government.is/library/01-Ministries/Prime-Ministrers-Office/constitution_of_iceland.pdf

Compensation

The president receives a monthly salary of 2,480,341 ISK. Article 9 of the constitution states the salary cannot be lowered for an incumbent president.

Residence

Article 12 of the constitution states that the president shall reside in or near

. Since inception the official residence of the president has been Bessastaðir which is in

Álftanes Álftanes () is the name of a town and a collection of small peninsulas in Iceland. It means ''swan peninsula''. The best known of these peninsulas extrudes from the eastern part of Reykjanes with the town of the same name in the Capital Regio ...

Bessastaðir with Reykavik in the background

Eligibility

Articles 4 and 5 of the constitution set the following qualifications for holding the presidency: * meet the qualifications specified for parliamentarians * be at least thirty-five years old * have at least 1,500 commendations

Succession

Articles 7 and 8 of the constitution state that when the president dies or is otherwise unable to perform his duties, such as when he is abroad or sick, the

prime minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

, the president of the

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...

and the president of the Supreme Court shall collectively assume the power of the office until the president can resume their duties or a new president has been elected. Their meetings are led by the president of the Parliament where they vote on any presidential decision. If the office of the president becomes vacant because of death or resignation, a new president shall be elected by the general public to a four-year term ending on 1 August in the fourth year after the elections. Sveinn Björnsson remains the only president to die in office in 1952, triggering a presidential election one year ahead of schedule.

Removal

Article 11 of the constitution lays out the process by which the president can be removed from office. It states that the president does not bear responsibility for the actions of his government and that he can not be prosecuted without consent of the Parliament. A

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...

instigated by the Parliament with 3/4 support must approve of his removal. Once the Parliament has approved of the referendum, the president must temporarily step aside until the results of the referendum are known. The referendum must be held within two months of the vote, and, should the removal be rejected by the people, then the Parliament must immediately be dissolved and a new general election held. A removal from office has not occurred since the founding of the republic.

List

There have been six presidents since the establishment of the republic. Term: ¹ ''appointed'' · ² '' died in office'' · ³ ''

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Timeline

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:President of Iceland Presidents of Iceland

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1944 introductions

1944 establishments in Iceland