The island of 340,000 people was one of the countries hit hardest by the 2008 financial crisis but has turned its economy around by focusing on tourism.
Iceland’s leading right-of-center Independence Party, led by Prime Minister Bjarni Benediktsson, won the lion’s share of votes – 25 percent – but could end up out of power as a center-left coalition appears to have secured an overall majority.
With the defeat of incumbent Prime Minister Bjarni Benediktsson’s coalition government, his main opponent, the Left-Green Movement’s Katrin Jakobsdottir, is likely to get a chance to form a narrow majority in parliament.
Still, the composition of any coalition government remained uncertain, as the president had not yet mandated a party to form one.
The Nordic island of 340,000 people, one of the countries hit hardest by the 2008 financial crisis, has staged a remarkable economic rebound spurred by a tourism boom.
The conservatives secured 16 seats in the 63-seat Parliament, known as the Althing. It was a disappointing performance for a party that has been involved in nearly every government since Iceland cut its last political ties to Denmark in 1944.
