Wednesday 1 August 2018

í embætti

On this day in 1980, Vigdís Finnbogadóttir became the first democratically directly elected female president (forseti—the presiding one and derived from the Æsir god Fosite, the personification of justice and reconciliation), assuming the high office in Iceland.  Though she initially won by only a slight majority of voters, she went on to serve three more terms, running in two of the elections unopposed, making her also the longest serving—to date—female head of state, with an administration of exactly sixteen years. In 1996, Vigdís chose not to be considered for re-election but has remained active since as a goodwill ambassador, lobbying on behalf of minority languages and world peace.