Centre Party surprised by Aittakumpu’s defection to Finns Party

The chair of the Centre Party’s parliamentary group, Antti Kurvinen, expressed surprise at the announcement made by MP Pekka Aittakumpu regarding his defection to the Finns Party. “This is, of course, sad and unfortunate news, and quite surprising. Neither I nor any other party leaders were aware of this in advance. We received the information about a minute or two before the press conference began,” Kurvinen stated.

Aittakumpu had given a critical interview to Helsingin Sanomat about the Centre Party about a week prior. According to Kurvinen, he and other party leaders did not perceive any indications of a potential defection in that interview. He noted it was unexpected that Aittakumpu voted in favor of the confidence of Foreign Trade and Development Minister Ville Tavio from the Finns Party last Tuesday while also supporting a motion of no confidence against the government led by Petteri Orpo.

The opposition party, the Social Democratic Party (SDP), put forth a vote of no confidence against Tavio and the entire Orpo government. “I did not anticipate this news. Aittakumpu had a large group of guests from his hometown of Helsinki a couple of weeks ago, and he asked me to speak to them. It gave the impression that he was quite satisfied with his influence within the Centre Party’s parliamentary group,” Kurvinen commented.

Aittakumpu justified his defection by stating he received more resonance from the Finns Party concerning issues around Yle, climate activism, LGBT ideology, and defending the Finnish language, culture, and way of life. When asked about potential further defections from the Centre Party to the Finns Party, Kurvinen emphasized that members of the Centre Party group have “free hands” regarding ethics or individual moral questions. He reinforced that the party has traditionally maintained a conscience-driven approach, accommodating both liberal and more traditionally-minded members.