Gunnar Thoroddsen

Gunnar Thoroddsen (pronounced [ˈɡʏnːar ˈtʰoːurɔtˌsɛn]) (29 December 1910 – 25 September 1983) was the Prime Minister of Iceland from 1980 to 1983.

Gunnar Thoroddsen
18th Prime Minister of Iceland
In office 8 February 1980 – 26 May 1983
President	Kristján Eldjárn Vigdís Finnbogadóttir
Preceded by	Benedikt Sigurðsson Gröndal
Succeeded by	Steingrímur Hermannsson
Minister of Finance
In office 20 November 1959 – 8 May 1965
Prime Minister	Olafur Thors Bjarni Benediktsson
Preceded by	Guðmundur Guðmundsson
Succeeded by	Magnús Jónsson
Mayor of Reykjavik
In office 10 February 1947 – 19 November 1959
Preceded by	Bjarni Benediktsson
Succeeded by	Auður Auðuns
Personal details
Born	29 December 1910 Reykjavík, Iceland
Died	25 September 1983 (aged 72) Reykjavík, Iceland
Political party	Independence
Alma mater	University of Iceland

Gunnar was the youngest man ever elected to the Althing, Iceland's Parliament. He was 23 years old when he was elected as Member of Parliament in 1934. He served as an Ambassador of Iceland in Denmark from 1965 to 1969 when he ran for the presidency of Iceland in 1968. He wished to succeed his father in law, Ásgeir Ásgeirsson, who served as president from 1952 to 1968. Gunnar had been mayor of Reykjavík from 1947 to 1959 and Minister of Finance of Iceland from 1959 to 1965.[1] He was minister of industry and a social welfare minister in the cabinet of Geir Hallgrímsson 28 August 1974 to 27 June 1978.

Gunnar and Geir were not in agreement and the disagreement led to Gunnar breaking away from the will of the Independence Party with a few members of parliament and forming a cabinet with the Progressive Party and the People's Alliance, that replaced a minority government of Benedikt Sigurðsson Gröndal. By forming his government Gunnar became the oldest Prime Minister in Iceland's history at the age of 69. Gunnar did not run in the 1983 elections for parliament, due to his illness, and ended his involvement in politics when his cabinet was succeeded by Steingrímur Hermannsson's cabinet.

References

1. "Fyrri ráðherrar | Fjármálaráðuneytið". web.archive.org. March 25, 2010.