Sauli Niinistö facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Sauli Niinistö
|
|
|---|---|
Official portrait, 2018
|
|
| 12th President of Finland | |
| In office 1 March 2012 – 1 March 2024 |
|
| Prime Minister |
|
| Preceded by | Tarja Halonen |
| Succeeded by | Alexander Stubb |
| Speaker of the Parliament of Finland | |
| In office 24 April 2007 – 27 April 2011 |
|
| Preceded by | Timo Kalli |
| Succeeded by | Ben Zyskowicz |
| Minister of Finance | |
| In office 2 February 1996 – 17 April 2003 |
|
| Prime Minister | Paavo Lipponen |
| Preceded by | Iiro Viinanen |
| Succeeded by | Antti Kalliomäki |
| Deputy Prime Minister of Finland | |
| In office 13 April 1995 – 30 August 2001 |
|
| Prime Minister | Paavo Lipponen |
| Preceded by | Pertti Salolainen |
| Succeeded by | Ville Itälä |
| Minister of Justice | |
| In office 13 April 1995 – 2 February 1996 |
|
| Prime Minister | Paavo Lipponen |
| Preceded by | Anneli Jäätteenmäki |
| Succeeded by | Kari Häkämies |
| Leader of the National Coalition Party | |
| In office 1994–2001 |
|
| Preceded by | Pertti Salolainen |
| Succeeded by | Ville Itälä |
| Member of the Finnish Parliament | |
| In office 21 March 2007 – 19 April 2011 |
|
| Constituency | Uusimaa |
| In office 21 March 1987 – 18 March 2003 |
|
| Constituency | Helsinki (1999–2003) Southwest Finland (1987–1999) |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Sauli Väinämö Niinistö
24 August 1948 Salo, Finland |
| Political party |
|
| Spouses |
Marja-Leena Alanko
(m. 1974; died 1995)Jenni Haukio
(m. 2009) |
| Children | 3 |
| Relatives | Ville Niinistö (nephew) |
| Alma mater | University of Turku |
| Signature |  |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Finland |
| Branch/service |  Finnish Army |
| Rank |  Captain |
Sauli Väinämö Niinistö (born 24 August 1948) is a Finnish politician. He served as the 12th President of Finland from 2012 to 2024.
Before becoming president, Niinistö was a lawyer. He led the National Coalition Party (NCP) from 1994 to 2001. He also held important government jobs like Minister of Justice (1995–1996) and Minister of Finance (1996–2003). He was also the Deputy Prime Minister from 1995 to 2001. From 2007 to 2011, he was the Speaker of the Parliament of Finland.
Niinistö ran for president in 2012 as the NCP candidate. He won the election, beating Pekka Haavisto with 62.6% of the votes. He became president on March 1, 2012. He was the first president from the NCP since 1956. In 2017, he announced he would run for re-election as an independent candidate. He won again in the first round on January 28, 2018, with 62.7% of the votes. His second term started on February 1, 2018.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Niinistö was born in Salo, Finland, in 1948. His father, Väinö Niinistö, managed newspaper circulation, and his mother, Hilkka Niinistö, was a nurse.
He finished high school in 1967 and then studied at the University of Turku. He earned a Bachelor of Laws degree in 1974 and completed his legal training in 1977.
Political Career
Before entering national politics, Niinistö ran his own law firm in Salo from 1978 to 1988.
He served on the local council of Salo from 1977 to 1992. In 1987, he was elected as a Member of the Parliament of Finland. In 1994, he became the leader of the National Coalition Party (NCP). The next year, in 1995, he became the Justice Minister in Prime Minister Paavo Lipponen's government.
In 1996, Niinistö became the Minister of Finance. He continued in this role until 2003. During this time, he also served as Deputy Prime Minister. As Finance Minister, he was known for being careful with government spending. He was the first person in Finland to buy something with euros on January 1, 2002. He stepped back from politics in 2001 and was replaced as party leader. After leaving the government in 2003, he became a vice president at the European Investment Bank.
In 2005, Niinistö decided to run for president in the 2006 Finnish presidential election. He represented the NCP and challenged the sitting President, Tarja Halonen. He made it to the second round of the election but lost to Halonen.
In 2006, Niinistö ran for Parliament again in the 2007 Finnish parliamentary election. He received a record number of votes in that election. After the 2007 election, Niinistö became the Speaker of the Parliament of Finland. He also became the honorary president of the European People's Party (EPP) in 2002.
Niinistö was elected as the president of the Football Association of Finland in 2009. However, his term was cut short when he was elected president of Finland.
Presidency (2012–2024)
Niinistö ran for president a second time in the 2012 Finnish presidential election. He won the first round with 37.0% of the votes. In the final round, he won against Pekka Haavisto with about 62.6% of the votes. This was a larger victory margin than any previous directly elected president.
After becoming president, Niinistö promised to create a special group to help prevent young people from feeling left out. He also showed concern for problems in rural areas. He emphasized the importance of working well with the government and Parliament.
In May 2017, Niinistö announced he would seek re-election in the 2018 Finnish presidential election. He ran as an independent candidate, supported by the National Coalition Party and Christian Democrats. He won the election in the first round with 62.7% of the votes. This made him the first president in Finland to win the first round by popular vote.
By 2022, Niinistö was very popular, with an approval rating of 92 percent. However, he did not seek a third term, even though some people wanted him to.
Foreign Policy Decisions
As President, Niinistö traveled to Russia in February 2013 to meet with President Vladimir Putin. They discussed trade and business.
In October 2016, Niinistö met with Iranian leaders in Tehran. They talked about working together more closely on economic matters, human rights, and the fight against terrorism.
In 2018, Niinistö said he would stop selling weapons to the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. This was because of their involvement in the conflict in Yemen.
On July 16, 2018, Niinistö hosted U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Putin for a summit in Helsinki. He also spoke at the United Nations General Assembly in New York in September 2018.
Niinistö visited China in January 2019 and met with Chinese President Xi Jinping. They discussed friendship and partnership between Finland and China. They also launched the 2019 China-Finland Year of Winter Sports.
_19.jpg)
.jpg)
In October 2019, Niinistö spoke out against Turkey's military actions in northern Syria.
Finland and NATO
.jpg)
On March 4, 2022, Niinistö visited Washington, D.C., to meet with U.S. President Joe Biden. They talked about Finland's security and agreed to work more closely together.
On May 12, 2022, Niinistö and Prime Minister Sanna Marin announced that Finland intended to apply for NATO membership without delay.
During Niinistö's presidency, Finland and Sweden strengthened their military cooperation. Both countries decided to apply to join NATO together. When Turkey threatened to block Sweden's membership, Niinistö said that Finland would not join NATO if Sweden could not. Finland and Sweden later reached an agreement with Turkey in June 2022, allowing them to move forward with joining NATO.
After the Presidency (2024–present)
In March 2024, Niinistö was asked by Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, to prepare a report for the EU. This report is about how European societies can become better at handling crises. It covers traditional defense, new cyber threats, and how people's attitudes affect a society's ability to deal with challenges.
In 2025, Niinistö said that European countries were not doing enough to help end the war in Ukraine.
Personal Life
Niinistö married Marja-Leena Alanko in 1974, and they had two sons. Sadly, Marja-Leena died in a car crash in 1995. Niinistö wrote about this difficult time in his book, Viiden vuoden yksinäisyys (meaning "Five years of loneliness").
Later, Niinistö met Jenni Haukio in 2005. She worked for his political party and interviewed him for a magazine. They kept their relationship private until they got married on January 3, 2009. In October 2017, they announced they were expecting a child, and their son was born in February 2018. Their dog, Lennu, became famous online in 2017.
Niinistö is the uncle of Ville Niinistö, who is also a politician.
Sauli Niinistö survived the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami. He escaped the tsunami by climbing a utility pole with his son in Thailand.
He is a Christian and a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland. In his free time, he enjoys roller skating and playing ice hockey in the winter.
Besides Finnish, Niinistö also speaks English and Swedish.
Honours and Awards
Coat of Arms
 |
|
National Awards
- Finland: Grand Master and Commander Grand Cross with Collar of the Order of the White Rose of Finland
- Finland: Grand Master and Commander Grand Cross of the Order of the Lion of Finland
- Finland: Grand Master and Commander Grand Cross of the Order of the Cross of Liberty
International Awards
Austria: Grand Star of the Decoration of Honour for Services to the Republic of Austria (2016)
Denmark: Knight of the Order of the Elephant (2013)
Estonia: Collar of the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana (2014)
France: Grand Cross of the Order of the Legion of Honour (2013)
Germany: Grand Cross Special Class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (2018)
Iceland: Grand Cross with Collar of the Order of the Falcon (2013)
Italy: Grand Cross (2008), with Collar of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (2017)
Latvia: Commander Grand Cross with Chain 1st Class of the Order of the Three Stars (2013)
Lithuania: Grand Cross of the Order of Vytautas the Great with Golden Chain (2013)
Luxembourg: Grand Cross of the Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau (2016)
Mexico: Collar of the Order of the Aztec Eagle (2015)
Netherlands: Knight Grand Cross of the Order of Orange-Nassau
Norway:
- Grand Cross of the Order of St. Olav (2012)
- Grand Cross of the Royal Norwegian Order of Merit (2007)
Poland: Knight of the Order of White Eagle (2015)
Sweden:
- Knight (2012) with Collar (2016) of the Royal Order of the Seraphim
- Recipient of the 70th Birthday Badge Medal of King Carl XVI Gustaf (2016)
- Recipient of the Golden Jubilee Medal of King Carl XVI Gustaf (2023)
Ukraine: Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise, 1st class (2021)
Honorary Degrees
- Finland: Honorary Doctor of Administrative Sciences – University of Tampere (2010)
- Finland: Honorary Doctor of Laws – University of Turku (2011)
Hungary: Honorary Doctor of Laws – Eötvös Loránd University (2012)- Finland: Honorary Doctor of Sports Sciences – University of Jyväskylä (2013)
- Finland: Honorary Doctor of Veterinary Medicine – University of Helsinki (2015)
- Finland: Honorary Doctor of Economics – Aalto University School of Business (2016)
- Finland: Honorary Doctor of Laws – University of Helsinki (2017)
United States of America: Honorary Doctorate of Laws from the University of Minnesota (2017)- Finland: Honorary Doctor of Military Sciences – National Defence University (2018)
- United States of America: Honored with Global Citizen Awards – Atlantic Council (2022)
- Finland: Honorary Doctor of Philosophy, University of Helsinki (2023)
See Also
In Spanish: Sauli Niinistö para niños
