For the candidate

Local elections are a way of making decisions on matters that are important and close to us all: everyday life, vitality and the future.

Regardless of whether you are interested in the affairs of the youth, education, promotion of entrepreneurship or affecting climate change, as a councillor, you can influence the way in which these matters are handled in your municipality. 

Don't be a bystander when it comes to topics as important as these – stand as a candidate and participate in building the municipality of the future! 

Each municipality is different and unique. This means that, in April 2025, a total of 292 local elections will be held.* The county elections held at the same time involve decisions concerning the wellbeing services counties. 

The local councillors to be elected in the April 2025 elections will decide on services and issues that will ensure a good everyday life and the vitality of the region. We need enthusiastic and committed residents from different backgrounds to make these decisions. Could you be one of them?

There is no functional society without functional municipalities – stand as a candidate in the local elections!

292 different elections

Each municipality is different, which means that, actually, we will have 292 separate local elections – one in each municipality of mainland Finland! The diversity of municipalities is a resource: each municipality can influence its own future with the decisions it makes. 

Now, if ever, we need bold, co-operative decision-makers who can look towards the future and possess the motivation and skills to steer municipal affairs in the right direction.

As a municipal decision-maker, you will bear a heavy responsibility – and have the chance to solve problems!

Even though all municipalities are different, some themes are common. 

As a municipal decision-maker, you will play a key role in finding solutions to the following issues during the next term:

1. You will influence the well-being of children and young people and the way in which your municipality organises opportunities for quality education.
2. You will have an even greater ability to strengthen vitality and growth in Finland and to bolster the role your municipality plays in that vitality. 
3. As a decision-maker in urban areas and cities, you will ensure that the well-being you generate will affect an area beyond the borders of your own municipality.
4. As a decision-maker in a net emigration municipality, you will have the opportunity to find smart adaptation solutions to continue to secure a good everyday life.
5. You will make quality decisions and contribute to the realisation of a constructive decision-making atmosphere.

Do you want to know more? Download the discussion topics presented by the Association of Finnish cities and municipalities for the local elections!

Who is eligible to stand as a candidate for the local council? 

Persons eligible to stand as a candidate in the local elections are those 

• whose municipality of residence is the municipality in question
• who have the right to vote in local elections in one of the municipalities and 
• who have not been declared legally incompetent, in other words, who are not under guardianship. The candidates must meet the requirements for general candidate eligibility decreed in the Municipalities Act. This means that they must be 18 years old and their municipality of residence has to be the municipality in which they stand as a candidate. In addition, they must not be in an employment relationship as stipulated by the Act in the beginning of the council term. For example, an official in a position of leadership in the municipality cannot stand as a candidate for the council of the municipality that is their employer.

Citizens of Finland and, on certain terms, of other countries living in the municipality in question have the right to vote and stand as a candidate in the local elections.
 

Are you looking for instructions regarding outdoor advertising for local elections or other legal election instructions? 

Take a look at the website of the Association of Finnish Cities and Municipalities at kuntaliitto.fi:

• FAQ regarding standing as a candidate in the local elections | Kuntaliitto.fi
• Familiarise yourself with our local elections information package.

What are municipalities responsible for at present?

Municipalities organise the majority of the statutory basic services their residents need in their everyday life. The basic services are primarily funded by municipal taxation, central government transfers to local government as well as the fees charged for the services. 

The key basic services are:  

• education and cultural services, such as early childhood education, basic education, upper secondary level education, library services and youth work 
• technical services, such as building supervision, environmental protection, construction contracting for roads and other infrastructure as well as water and waste management. 

In addition, the local industrial policy, such as employment, integration, land use, building and urban design and principal aspects of the housing policy are issues that are decided on by municipalities. These are the matters that concretely impact the smooth running of our everyday lives and, for example, the creation of innovations and realisation of investments. 

They are also the matters that are decided on in the local elections. The county elections, on the other hand, will determine the decisions to be made for the wellbeing services counties. *An exception to this is the City of Helsinki; it is responsible for organising its social welfare, healthcare and rescue services. Thus, Helsinki will only hold local elections instead of arranging separate county elections. In Helsinki, the city councillors also decide on the affairs of social welfare and healthcare.

Decision-making in municipalities

The activities of municipalities are governed by political decision-making. 

The local council, elected by the residents, is the highest decision-making body of a municipality. Its members are elected through local elections for a term of four years at a time. The local council is responsible for the finances and activities of the municipality as well as for electing the chief executive of the municipality. 

The local council elects the members of the municipal government, whose duty it is to prepare and execute the decisions of the council. The local council also elects the committees that oversee the provision of public services in the municipality.

The self-governing status of municipalities is decreed in the Constitution and the decision-making process in the Municipalities Act.