Why Finland voted out one of the world's youngest leaders

STORY: The failure of Finland's Prime Minister Sanna Marin to secure re-election over the weekend will end the rule of a woman who is one of the world's youngest leaders, and is seen as a role model for progressive millennials with fans around the world.

But who faced sharp criticism at home over government spending and partying in her personal life.

Marin conceded defeat on Sunday (April 2) in the parliamentary election, as the opposition right-wing National Coalition Party, or NCP, claimed victory.

It was a tight contest, and now the NCP will get the first shot at creating a coalition government.

Marin became the world's youngest prime minister when she took office in 2019 aged 34.

But until now, she'd never faced an election as leader, having taken over the top job after Antti Rinne resigned months after leading her Social Democrats to victory in 2019.

And while she remains very popular among many Finns, particularly young moderates, her critics and some conservatives decried what they perceived as lavish spending on pensions and education they see as not frugal enough.

One of her legacies will be Finland's joining of the NATO alliance, which is expected to happen soon. She pushed for membership as the Ukraine war progressed.

The leader of the NCP, Petteri Orpo, accused Marin of eroding Finland's economic resilience at a time when Europe's energy crisis, driven by Russia's war in Ukraine, has hit the country hard and the cost of living has increased.

This is 26-year-old voter Maija Simoska.

"I think it's the challenging couple of years we have behind us now, I guess people want to see change of any sort and that might explain the result maybe a little bit."

Images of Marin partying were also splashed on newspapers across Europe, further antagonizing opponents.

And for some, Marin's rock star status distracted from her politics.

As Anna Puhkka puts it:

"It's a democracy, it's not a one person leading the way and only saying what we'll do."