Member-only story
A Guide to the Scandinavian Political System for Americans
How are elections and the political system in Scandinavia different from the American one?
As a Norwegian I have on numerous occasions been baffled and confused by the American political system. So many concepts are different from what we are used to in Scandinavia. Political parties hold primaries. Instead of a Parliament there is a Congress with a Senate and a House of Representatives. Then there is the oddball Electoral College, which Americans always seem get worked up about in the aftermath of every election.
Yet, I realize that to Americans and Canadians many of the European political systems such as the Scandinavian ones are equally if not more puzzling. I was first made aware of this fact when trying to explain Norwegian elections to my American family and relatives. This story is an attempt to enlighten my American friends across the pond. I intend to cover the following topics in this story:
- Relation between election districts and selected representatives
- Anecdote explaining why contacting your representative works very different in Scandinavia
- How representatives get selected
- Implications of voting using proportional representation
