Tell-All Book On Finnish PM Ups His Ratings
HELSINKI, Finland — There are countries where intimate details about a prime minister's love life, from Internet dating to steamy sauna encounters, could have a negative impact in opinion polls. Then there's Finland.
A book by Prime Minister Vanhanen's former girlfriend, which contains information that would make most men blush, seems only to have boosted the 51-year-old Center Party leader's popularity ahead of Sunday's parliamentary elections.
"The Prime Minister's Bride" by Susan Kuronen, a twice-divorced mother of three, was released last month as campaigning began and immediately hit the country's nonfiction best seller list.
Appropriately for a nation that is home to Nokia Corp., the world's no. 1 mobile-phone maker, the narrative is dominated by text messages between Ms. Kuronen and the divorced prime minister, who was once voted Finland's sexiest man by a women's magazine.
Even the ending has a cellular touch. Ms. Kuronen claims Mr. Vanhanen terminated their nine-month relationship last October with a text message.
But for all the tabloid coverage, Finns were not amused. Many felt Ms. Kuronen, 36, overstepped when she exposed their romance, from the initial contact on an Internet dating service to passionate moments at the prime minister's country house outside Helsinki.
More than 45,000 people signed an Internet petition objecting to the book and voicing support for Mr. Vanhanen, whose two teenage children live with him. Some bookstores refused to put it on the shelf.
"I would say his popularity has improved directly because of it," said Jan Sundberg, professor of political science at the University of Helsinki. The prime minister has declined comment except to say he has read the book. But he has denied claims by Ms. Kuronen that she heard nighttime telephone conversations on matters of state.
The Center Party has led most polls ahead of its main coalition partner, the Social Democrats. Analysts say the main question now is whether the Center Party will continue working with the left or team up with the Conservative Party.
