iStock/Thinkstock(REYKJAVIK, Iceland) — Iceland’s Pirate Party has been asked to try to form a government after the country’s two largest parties failed to do so, according to BBC News.
In October’s elections, the anti-establishment Pirate Party surged to 10 seats in the small European island’s 63-seat parliament. That is fewer than both the Independence Party and the Left-Greens, but those parties were unable to form a coalition with a majority of seats in parliament.
As a result, President Gudni Johannesson asked the Pirates to lead new coalition talks.
Pirates head Birgitta Jonsdottir said she was “optimistic that we will find a way to work together”.
BBC News says the Pirate Party, founded in 2012, ran on a platform promoting increased political accountability, free health care and closing tax loopholes. Opponents say investors may hesistate to invest in Iceland’s economy if an inexperienced political party is at the helm.
Copyright © 2016, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.