Norway's minority Labour Party government is on course to narrowly win re-election in the parliamentary election, projections by broadcasters NRK and TV2, as well as daily VG, showed as voting ended.
The left-wing bloc of Labour and four smaller parties was projected to win 87 seats, more than the 85 needed for a majority, while right-wing parties headed by Progress and the Conservatives were on track for 82 seats.
Norway voted on Monday on the final day of a parliamentary election dominated by concerns over rising living costs at home and turmoil in international politics, with the ruling Labour Party narrowly favoured to remain in office.
According to pre-poll exit polls, the left-wing bloc of Labour and four smaller parties was seen winning 88 seats in parliament, three more than the minimum needed to secure a majority and down from a combined 100 seats in 2021, according to an average of recent opinion polls.
On the right, the populist Progress Party, the centre-right Conservatives and two smaller groups look set to win the remaining 81 seats, but opinion poll forecasts were within the margin of error, and the outcome could depend on how some of the smallest parties fare.
Inflation, taxes and the quality of public services were key issues in the campaign, and the result could have an impact on the oil and gas industry and power supplies to Europe, as well as the management of Norway's $2 trillion sovereign wealth fund.
'Tutti frutti' coalition
But the wars in Ukraine and Gaza and US President Donald Trump's foreign and trade policies also loomed large, and analysts said this could benefit Labour Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere, a former foreign minister who presents himself as a safe pair of hands.
Voting in the two-day election concluded at 1900 GMT, followed by immediate exit polls, with final results expected by early Tuesday morning.
Labour was lagging in the polls at the start of the year but received a major boost in February from the surprise return to politics of former NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg as finance minister, a move dubbed "Stoltenback" in Norwegian media.
Stoere said on Sunday that bringing Stoltenberg, a friend and three-term prime minister, into the cabinet had transformed Labour's prospects in the campaign.
"I picked the best team to turn things around," Stoere told TV2.
Stoere has ruled since 2021 with the backing of the agrarian Centre Party and the Socialist Left, but opinion polls show he may also need to rely on the communist Red Party and the Greens in a mix some analysts have dubbed a "tutti frutti" coalition.
Demands from Greens and Communists could include tougher restrictions on oil and gas exploration, more taxes on the wealthy and high earners, and more overall spending from the country's sovereign wealth fund.
