President of Iceland

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Iceland
Image:Icstateflag.svg This article is part of the series: Politics and government of Iceland

Constitution President Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson Prime Minister Geir H. Haarde (Independ.) Althing Ombudsman Political parties Politicians Elections: 2004, 2007 Foreign relations Iceland and the EU Cod War Agreed Minute
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The President of Iceland (Icelandic: forseti Íslands) is Iceland's elected head of state. The president is elected to a four-year term by universal adult suffrage and has limited powers. There have been five presidents since Iceland gained independence from Denmark in 1944. The incumbent is Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, who was re-elected in the 2004 presidential election, having been first elected in 1996.

The presidential residence is situated in Bessastaðir in Álftanes. The nation's constitution specifies that when the president cannot perform the duties of the office, such as when he or she is abroad or under anesthesia, the prime minister, the president of the Althing (Parliament), and the president of the Supreme Court take over the power vested in the office. The three vote on any presidential decisions that must be made during that time. The president is also the designated Grand Master of the Order of the Falcon.

[edit] Presidents of Iceland

Sveinn Björnsson (1944–1952)
Ásgeir Ásgeirsson (1952–1968)
Kristján Eldjárn (1968–1980)
Vigdís Finnbogadóttir (1980–1996)
Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson (1996–present)

[edit] Latest election

Main article: Icelandic presidential election, 2004

[discuss] – [edit]
**Summary of the 26 June 2004 Icelandic presidential election results**
Candidates	Votes	%
Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson	90,662	85.6
Baldur Ágústsson	13,250	12.3
Ástþór Magnússon	2,001	1.9
Total valid votes (turnout 63.0%)	105,913	100.0
Empty ballots	27,627
Void votes	834
Source: Ruv.is. Blank votes made up 23.3 percent of the total. All three candidates stood as independents. These are the final figures.