Party sources have told Yle that a group of the SDP’s local party chairmen have held a crisis meeting to discuss party leader Jutta Urpilainen’s lack of support among party ranks.
A recent poll suggested that Urpilainen is in line to fail in her bid for re-election when the party votes on a leader in May. Urpilainen was found to enjoy the suport of 31 percent of respondents to a poll published in Helsingin Sanomat last month.
Meanwhile 45 percent said they intended to vote for Antti Rinne, a lawyer and union leader from Helsinki, and Urpilainen’s main challenger for the leadership.
According to information received by Yle, some of the SDP’s local chairs are concerned that current chair Jutta Urpilainen has not faced up to the fact that her re-election may no longer be certain.
At a crisis meeting of local party chairmen, SDP members are believed to have nominated the chairs of the party’s three largest local groups to confront Urpilainen over the issue, and make it clear to her that she no longer has the backing of the majority of her party.
The SDP’s members will vote in elections for the chairperson at the party’s conference in May, to be held in Seinäjoki. Candidates have already been selected, and Urpilainen launched her campaign for re-election on Monday.
