Political chaos rules in Oslo

Oslo City Council.
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Norway's capital still has no new government in place nor is it clear who will be Oslo's mayor, nearly five weeks after local elections were held all over the country.

Most municipalities have since hammered out the political coalitions that can agree on policy for the local governing bodies in Norway known as the byråd.

In the country's biggest and arguably most important city, however, chaos continues after Norway's most conservative party, the Progress Party, pulled out of a pending agreement with other right-leaning parties to form a city government in Oslo.

The small, conservative Christian Democrats party also pulled out, catching other politicians off guard. The surprise moves seem to have spoiled chances for the Progress Party and the Conservatives to dominate city government, even though both won the most votes in elections last month.

That's because the small Liberal Party (Venstre) won enough votes to be in a swing position, and they're determined to assert themselves. They demanded that one of their members be named mayor, in return for cooperation, but the Progress Party wouldn't swallow that.

Erling Lae, leader of the Municipal Executive Board (byråd), said he was disappointed and hoped for a new solution.

"We hope we can still talk with each other," Lae said. A new government is supposed to be in place by the middle of next week.

Aftenposten English Web Desk
Nina Berglund/NTB