President of Iceland facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Quick facts for kids President of Iceland
Presidential Standard
Presidential Coat of Arms
Incumbent Halla Tómasdóttir since 1 August 2024
Office of the President
Style	Madam/Mr President (informal) His/Her Excellency (diplomatic)
Member of	State Council of Iceland
Residence	Bessastaðir
Seat	Garðabær, Iceland
Appointer	Popular vote (plurality voting)
Term length	Four years, no term limits
Constituting instrument	Constitution of Iceland
Precursor	King of Iceland
Formation	17 June 1944; 80 years ago (1944-06-17)
First holder	Sveinn Björnsson
Succession	Line of succession
Salary	€289,000 annually
Website

The president of Iceland (Icelandic: Forseti Íslands) is the head of state of Iceland. This means they are the official leader of the country. The current president is Halla Tómasdóttir, who won the election in 2024.

The president is chosen by the people in an election every four years. There is no limit to how many times a president can be re-elected. The president has certain powers, but these are limited.

In the past, if a president decided to run for re-election, they usually won easily. However, in 2012, the president at the time, Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, won with just over half of the votes.

Iceland made history by being the first country to have a woman as its elected head of state. Vigdís Finnbogadóttir became president on August 1, 1980.

The official home of the president is called Bessastaðir. It is located in Garðabær, which is close to Iceland's capital city, Reykjavík.

How the President's Role Began

When Iceland became a republic in 1944, it adopted a new constitution. Before this, Iceland had a king. The new constitution simply changed the role of the king to the president of Iceland. The first president was chosen by the Parliament.

What "Forseti" Means

The Icelandic word for president is forseti. This word means "one who sits foremost" or "fore-sitter." It is also the name of a god in Norse mythology. This god is known for justice and solving problems.

What the President Does

The president of Iceland has several important jobs and powers. These powers help the country run smoothly.

Executive Powers

The president works with the government's ministers.

Choosing Ministers

The president chooses the ministers who form the Cabinet of Iceland. They decide how many ministers there will be and what jobs each minister will have. Ministers cannot quit on their own; the president must let them go. These ministers are in charge of carrying out the president's executive powers. They are responsible for their own actions.

After a general election, the president picks a party leader. This leader is usually the one most likely to form a government with enough support. The president then asks them to start talks to create a new government. Some past presidents were very active in choosing governments. Others were more neutral and let the parties decide.

State Council Meetings

The president and the Cabinet meet together in the State Council. In these meetings, the Cabinet tells the president about important country matters. They also discuss new laws they want to propose. The Cabinet can also suggest calling, pausing, or ending Parliament meetings.

Dealing with Crimes

The president can decide to stop a criminal case from going forward. They can also grant a pardon to someone who has been found guilty. A pardon means the person is forgiven for their crime.

Legislative Powers

The president and the Parliament work together to make laws.

Signing Laws

The president signs bills that Parliament has passed to make them official laws. The president can also choose not to sign a bill. This is like saying "no" or vetoing it. If the president vetoes a bill, it can still become law. But, if Parliament does not withdraw the bill, the people of Iceland must vote on it in a special election called a referendum. If the people approve it, it becomes law. If they reject it, it does not.

Only one president, Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, has ever vetoed a law. He did it three times between 2004 and 2011. This power was meant to be used only in very special situations.

Proposing Laws

The president can suggest new bills or ideas to Parliament. Parliament must then think about these suggestions. If Parliament is not meeting, the president can create temporary laws. These temporary laws must follow the constitution. They become invalid if Parliament does not approve them when it meets again. No president has ever used this power to propose bills or create temporary laws.

The president can also allow exceptions from laws in certain cases. No president has used this power either.

Working with Parliament

The president calls Parliament to meet after elections. They also officially end Parliament's sessions. The president can temporarily pause meetings or move them if needed. Each year, the president officially opens all regular Parliament meetings.

Ceremonial Duties

The president is also the main leader of the Order of the Falcon. This is an important award system in Iceland.

President's Pay

The president gets a monthly salary of about 2,480,341 ISK. The constitution says that a president's salary cannot be lowered while they are in office.

President's Home

The constitution states that the president should live in or near Reykjavík. Since the beginning, the official home of the president has been Bessastaðir. This residence is in Álftanes.

Bessastaðir with Reykjavík in the background

Who Can Be President

To become president, a person must meet certain requirements:

They must be at least 35 years old.
They must meet the same rules as members of Parliament.
They need to have at least 1,500 people support their candidacy.

What Happens if the President Cannot Serve

If the president dies, resigns, or cannot do their job (for example, if they are sick or out of the country), a group of three people takes over. This group includes the prime minister, the head of the Parliament, and the head of the Supreme Court. They share the president's powers until the president can return or a new one is elected. The head of Parliament leads their meetings.

This also happens during the time between an old president's term ending and a new president starting.

If the president's office becomes empty because of death or resignation, a new president is elected by the public. This new president serves a four-year term. So far, Sveinn Björnsson is the only president who died while in office, in 1952. This caused an early election.

Removing a President from Office

The constitution explains how a president can be removed from office. The president is not responsible for the government's actions. They cannot be put on trial without Parliament's permission.

To remove a president, Parliament must vote for a referendum with at least 3/4 support. A referendum is a public vote. If Parliament approves the referendum, the president must temporarily step aside. The public vote must happen within two months. If the people vote against removing the president, then Parliament must be dissolved, and a new election for Parliament must be held right away.

No president has ever been removed from office since Iceland became a republic.

List of Presidents

Iceland has had seven presidents since it became a republic.

Term: ¹ appointed · ² died in office · ³ uncontested

Nº		Took office	Left office	Duration	Term	Prime ministers
1	Sveinn Björnsson (1881–1952)	17 June 1944	25 January 1952²	7 years, 7 months, 8 days (2,778 days)	1 (1944)¹	Björn Þórðarson Ólafur Thors Stefán Jóhann Stefánsson Ólafur Thors Steingrímur Steinþórsson
					2 (1945)³
					3 (1949)³
		He was the Regent of Iceland before becoming the first president. He is the only president to die in office. When he died, the prime minister, the head of Parliament, and the head of the Supreme Court took over his duties.
2	Ásgeir Ásgeirsson (1894–1972)	1 August 1952	31 July 1968	16 years (5,844 days)	4 (1952)	Steingrímur Steinþórsson Ólafur Thors Hermann Jónasson Emil Jónsson Ólafur Thors Bjarni Benediktsson Ólafur Thors Bjarni Benediktsson
					5 (1956)³
					6 (1960)³
					7 (1964)³
		He was the first president chosen by a public vote.
3	Kristján Eldjárn (1916–1982)	1 August 1968	31 July 1980	12 years (4,383 days)	8 (1968)	Bjarni Benediktsson Jóhann Hafstein Ólafur Jóhannesson Geir Hallgrímsson Ólafur Jóhannesson Benedikt Sigurðsson Gröndal Gunnar Thoroddsen
					9 (1972)³
					10 (1976)³
		He thought about forming a government that did not need Parliament's support when party leaders could not agree.
4	Vigdís Finnbogadóttir (born 1930)	1 August 1980	31 July 1996	16 years (5,844 days)	11 (1980)	Gunnar Thoroddsen Steingrímur Hermannsson Þorsteinn Pálsson Steingrímur Hermannsson Davíð Oddsson
					12 (1984)³
					13 (1988)
					14 (1992)³
		She was the first elected female president in the world. She won her first election with the lowest number of votes for a new president, but she won her third election very easily.
5	Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson (born 1943)	1 August 1996	31 July 2016	20 years (7,305 days)	15 (1996)	Davíð Oddsson Halldór Ásgrímsson Geir Haarde Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir Sigmundur Davíð Gunnlaugsson Sigurður Ingi Jóhannsson
					16 (2000)³
					17 (2004)
					18 (2008)³
					19 (2012)
		He was the first president to use the power to veto a law from Parliament. He used this power two more times.
6	Guðni Thorlacius Jóhannesson (born 1968)	1 August 2016	31 July 2024	8 years (2,921 days)	20 (2016)	Sigurður Ingi Jóhannsson Bjarni Benediktsson Katrín Jakobsdóttir Bjarni Benediktsson
		1 August 2016	31 July 2024	8 years (2,921 days)	21 (2020)
		He won his second election in 2020 by a very large margin.
7	Halla Tómasdóttir (born 1968)	1 August 2024	Incumbent	318 days	22 (2024)	Bjarni Benediktsson Kristrún Frostadóttir
7	Halla Tómasdóttir (born 1968)	She won with the second lowest number of votes for a new president. This was her second time running for president; she came in second place in 2016.