Sanna Marin has become Finland's youngest ever prime minister at the age of 34, making her the youngest current prime minister in the world.
Ms Marin was voted into power in December 2019 by her party, the Social Democrats, after incumbent Prime Minister Antti Rinne resigned following criticism over a postal workers' strike.
Ms Marin is now Finland's third female leader. There are currently four female party leaders in Finland's five party coalition. Three of these women are also under the age of 35.
It is hoped that these younger additions to the Finnish political landscape will help boost the popularity of their parties, which have been floundering in the polls only six months after being elected.
Kristiina Tolkki, from Finland's national broadcaster YLE, said: "Politics is getting harder". "We need some younger people who can be there 24/7, some fresh faces, always ready to react and not say anything stupid."
Who is Sanna Marin?
Although Ms Marin has only recently begun to garner international attention, she has been a rising star in Finnish politics for quite some time. Johanna Kantola, a professor of gender studies at Finland’s Tampere University, said: "She doesn’t come out of nowhere". "She is quite well-liked".
Until last week, Ms Marin was the minister for transport and communications. She also previously served as the party's vice chairwoman, and was elected to parliament in 2015.
She made her ambition clear since being elected, brushing off matters of global media and focusing instead on her political intentions.
"My thoughts have been in the proceedings and I have not followed the international and national media coverage”, she said. "We have promised change. Now we need action. I believe that trust will return through action."
As a mother to a 22-month-old daughter, she has also been quick to dismiss any doubts about her suitability for the job.
"I have never thought about my age or gender. I think of the reasons I got into politics and those things for which we have won the trust of the electorate."
Humble beginnings
Ms Marin has spoken openly about her modest upbringing, and regularly advocates for Finland's welfare state.
Born in Helsinki in 1985, her parents split up when she was young and the family faced financial difficulty. “When I was in high school, I felt that the people in politics were quite different and came from different backgrounds than me”, she told Me Naiset, a Finnish magazine, in 2015.
I want to build a society in which every child can become anything and in which every human being can live and grow old with dignity
She started working in a bakery aged 15, and later distributed magazines for extra money. Estonian interior minister Mart Helme recently dismissed Ms Marin as a "sales girl", for which the Estonian president Kersti Kaljulaid has since apologised.
Ms Marin was the first person in her family to graduate both high school and university. She was awarded a masters degree in Administrative Sciences in 2017.
The prime minister has also spoken about how she felt "invisible" when unable to discuss her mother's later same-sex partnership. “That was something that couldn’t be discussed." "It is only now in the 21st century that the debate about rainbow families has begun to be fairly open."
Since entering politics, she has said that this early family dynamic continues to shape her outlook. She now lives in Tampere with her husband and their young daughter.
"For me, human rights and equality of people have never been questions of opinion but the basis of my moral conception," she states on her website. “I joined politics because I want to influence how society sees its citizens and their rights."
"I want to build a society in which every child can become anything and in which every human being can live and grow old with dignity."
