Labour Party (Norway) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Labour Party Arbeiderpartiet
Abbreviation	A/Ap
Leader	Jonas Gahr Støre
Parliamentary leader	Rigmor Aasrud
Founded	22 August 1887; 137 years ago (1887-08-22)
Headquarters	Youngstorget 2 A, 5th floor, Oslo
Youth wing	Workers' Youth League
Membership (2023)	49,042
Ideology	Social democracy
Political position	Centre-left
European affiliation	Party of European Socialists
International affiliation	Progressive Alliance
Nordic affiliation	SAMAK The Social Democratic Group
Colours	Red
Slogan	"Trygghet, muligheter, fellesskap" ("Safety, opportunity, community")
Storting	48 / 169
County councils	277 / 777
Municipal councils	2,023 / 10,620
Sámi Parliament	7 / 39

The Labour Party (called Arbeiderpartiet in Norwegian) is a major political party in Norway. It believes in social democracy, which means it wants a fair society where everyone has equal chances. The party is on the centre-left side of politics.

The current leader of the Labour Party is Jonas Gahr Støre. He is also the Prime Minister of Norway. The Labour Party works with the Centre Party to form the government in Norway.

Since the 1930s, the party's main idea has been "everyone shall take part." They want a strong welfare state. This means the government helps people with things like healthcare and education. They pay for this through taxes. Over time, the party has also supported some ideas from a social market economy. This means they allow some private businesses and services.

The Labour Party has a youth group called the Workers' Youth League. The party is part of bigger groups in Europe and worldwide. These groups include the Party of European Socialists and the Progressive Alliance. The Labour Party has always supported Norway being part of NATO. They also supported Norway joining the European Union in two past votes.

The party started in 1887. It grew steadily and became the biggest party in Norway in 1927. Since 1935, the Labour Party has led the government for most of the time. From 1945 to 1961, they even had more than half the seats in the Norwegian Parliament. This was a very strong period for them.

History of the Labour Party

How the Party Started

The Labour Party's main office building in Oslo.

The Labour Party was founded in 1887 in a town called Arendal. They first took part in elections for the Norwegian Parliament (the Storting) in 1894. By 1903, they had members in Parliament. Their support grew until 1927, when they became the largest party in Norway.

In its early years, the party had many newspapers and other ways to share its ideas. These newspapers helped the party grow and reach more people.

The party went through some changes in the 1920s. Some members left to form other parties. But in 1927, many of these groups came back together with the Labour Party. That same year, Helga Karlsen became the first woman from the Labour Party to be a Member of Parliament.

In 1928, Christopher Hornsrud formed the Labour Party's first government. But it only lasted for two weeks. In the early 1930s, the party changed its approach. It decided to work more on making changes through the system. The Labour Party then returned to government in 1935 and stayed in power during Second World War. When Nazi Germany invaded Norway in 1940, the Labour-led government moved to London. They led Norway from there during the war.

After the Second World War

After the Second World War ended in 1945, the Labour Party won the election. They got more than half the seats in Parliament for the first time. Einar Gerhardsen became the Prime Minister. He was a very important leader in Norway after the war. People called him Landsfaderen, which means "Father of the Nation." He helped rebuild Norway after the war. The Labour Party kept its majority in Parliament until 1961.

In 1963, the Labour government had to step down for a short time. But they came back into power less than a month later. They stayed in office until 1965.

The Labour Party also led the government in other periods. These included 1971–1972, 1973–1981, 1986–1989, and 1990–1997. Important Labour prime ministers during this time were Oscar Torp, Trygve Bratteli, and Gro Harlem Brundtland. The Labour Party remained the biggest party in Norway throughout the rest of the 1900s.

The 21st Century

A Labour Party campaign booth in Oslo before the 2007 local elections.

In 2000, the Labour Party returned to power. Jens Stoltenberg became prime minister. But after some disagreements within the party, they had their worst election result since 1924 in 2001. They became an opposition party again.

In 2005, the Labour Party did much better in the election. They formed a government with the Socialist Left and Centre parties. This was called the "Red-green coalition."

In 2011, the party officially changed its name to "The Labour Party." This was to make it clearer for voters. On July 22, 2011, a terrible terrorist attack happened in Norway. A bomb exploded in Oslo, and then a shooting took place at the Labour Party's youth camp. Many people were killed. Prime Minister Stoltenberg's response to the attacks was praised by the public. He spoke about staying open and tolerant.

In the 2013 election, the Red-green coalition lost its majority. But the Labour Party was still the largest party. Jens Stoltenberg stepped down as party leader in 2014. He became the head of NATO. Jonas Gahr Støre then became the new party leader.

In the 2017 election, the Labour Party lost some seats. They became an opposition party again. In 2021, the Labour Party returned to government after eight years. They formed a minority government with the Centre Party. Jonas Gahr Støre became the Prime Minister. Soon after, the government faced challenges like the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

How the Labour Party is Organized

The Labour Party has local groups all over Norway. There are about 2,500 of these groups. The party has always worked closely with the Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO). This is a big group for workers.

In the past, if you were a member of LO, you were also a member of the Labour Party. This changed in 1995. The party had about 200,500 members in 1950. In 2021, they had about 45,553 members. Since 2005, the party has made sure that there are equal numbers of men and women in leadership roles.

The most important meeting for the party is the Party Congress. It happens every two years. Between these big meetings, a smaller group called the National Delegate's Meeting makes decisions. The party is led by one main leader and usually one or two deputy leaders. As of 2022, Jonas Gahr Støre is the leader.

The party also has a youth organization, the Workers' Youth League. It also has a women's group called the Labour Party Women's Network. The party takes part in elections for the Sami Parliament of Norway. This parliament represents the Sami people in Norway.

Important Labour Party Members

Party Leaders

Jonas Gahr Støre, who has been the party leader since 2014 and Prime Minister since 2021.

Labour Party Prime Ministers

• Christopher Hornsrud (January–February 1928)
• Johan Nygaardsvold (1935–1945)
• Einar Gerhardsen (1945–1951)
• Oscar Torp (1951–1955)
• Einar Gerhardsen (1955–1963), (1963–1965)
• Trygve Bratteli (1971–1972, 1973–1976)
• Odvar Nordli (1976–1981)
• Gro Harlem Brundtland (February–October 1981, 1986–1989, 1990–1996)
• Thorbjørn Jagland (1996–1997)
• Jens Stoltenberg (2000–2001, 2005–2013)
• Jonas Gahr Støre (2021–present)

Electoral Results

How the Labour Party has Performed in Elections

The chart below shows how much support the Labour Party has received in parliamentary elections over the years. The higher the bar, the more votes they got.

See also

In Spanish: Partido Laborista (Noruega) para niños