Iiris Suomela
{{short description|Finnish politician (born 1994)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2024}}
{{Infobox officeholder
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| party = Green League
| image = Iiris Suomela 2020.jpg
| caption = Suomela in 2020
| constituency_MP = Pirkanmaa
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| parliament = Finnish
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1994|5|1|df=yes}}
| birth_place = Tampere, Finland
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| children = 1
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Iiris Suomela (born 1 May 1994) was a one term Finnish politician formerly serving in the Parliament of Finland for the Green League at the Pirkanmaa constituency. She was a member of the Grand Committee and the Finance Committee.[https://www.eduskunta.fi/FI/kansanedustajat/Sivut/1423.aspx Eduskunta profile] She has also formerly been vice chairperson for Tampere city council,{{Cite web |last=Airo |first=Tatu |date=23 November 2017 |title=Tässä ovat Tampereen valtuuston taitavimmat puhujat – asiantuntija kertoo, miten poliitikko saa muut pauloihinsa |url=https://www.aamulehti.fi/tampere/art-2000007568825.html |access-date=19 February 2023 |website=Aamulehti |language=fi}} and a Member of the Board of Directors of University of Tampere.{{Cite web|title=Uusi Tampereen yliopisto sai ensimmäisen hallituksen – kokoonpano kerää heti kritiikkiä: "Ei täytä tasa-arvovaatimuksia"|url=https://yle.fi/uutiset/3-10472743|access-date=8 March 2021|website=Yle Uutiset|language=fi}}
While the elected temporarily leader of the Green League, Maria Ohisalo, was on parental leave during first half of 2022, Suomela was the acting chairperson of the party.{{Cite web|title=Yle - Tuesday's papers: Green changes, man re-found, and Olympic Stadium complaints|url=https://yle.fi/uutiset/osasto/news/tuesdays_papers_green_changes_man_re-found_and_olympic_stadium_complaints/12139628?origin=rss|website=yle.fi|language=en}} Suomela led the party into country's first county elections in January 2022, in which the Green League was among the biggest losers, as health and social care tend to be topics that do not attract younger voters who make up a major part of Green League's supporters.{{Cite web|title=Vihreiden heikko tulos aluevaaleissa saa kritiikkiä omilta: "Puolueessa on selkeytettävä linjaa"|url=https://www.is.fi/politiikka/art-2000008561326.html|publisher=Ilta-Sanomat|language=fi}}
Early life and education
Suomela was born in Tampere. She did her International Baccaulerate in Atlantic College which is located in Wales and is part of the United World Colleges network. Soon after she started her Master's Degree studies in sociology in University of Tampere.{{Cite web |date=18 April 2019 |title=Eduskunnan kuopus: Iiris Suomela on kympin tyttö |url=https://www.apu.fi/artikkelit/eduskunnan-kuopus-iiris-suomela-on-kympin-tytto |access-date=19 February 2023 |website=www.apu.fi}}
Political career
Suomela is an environmentalist and human rights advocate.{{Cite web |date=26 June 2019 |title=Nyt.fi {{!}} Iiris Suomela on ajautunut julkisuudessa vihaiseksi tasa-arvoloukkaantujaksi, vaikka haluaa puhua veroista |url=https://www.hs.fi/nyt/art-2000006154452.html |access-date=29 May 2022 |website=Helsingin Sanomat |language=fi}} She was one of two founders of the [http://suostumus2018.fi Suostumus2018 campaign] whose goal was to rewrite the Finnish penal code regarding sexual assault so that lack of consent would be sufficient to convict an assaulter (whereas previously there had to be e.g. a threat of violence).{{Cite web |date=18 April 2019 |title=Eduskunnan kuopus: Iiris Suomela on kympin tyttö |url=https://www.apu.fi/artikkelit/eduskunnan-kuopus-iiris-suomela-on-kympin-tytto |access-date=19 February 2023 |website=www.apu.fi}}{{Cite web |date=8 November 2018 |title=Suostumus2018-kampanjan tukibileet! |url=http://suostumus2018.fi/2018/11/08/suostumus2018-kampanjan-tukibileet/ |access-date=19 February 2023 |website=Suostumus2018 |language=fi}} The parliament approved the law in its new form in June 2022.
Suomela was elected Member of Parliament in the 2019 parliamentary elections from the Pirkanmaa constituency with 4,873 votes.{{Cite web|title=Ylen Vaalikone 2019 - Yles Valkompass 2019|url=https://vaalikone.yle.fi/eduskuntavaali2019?lang=fi-FI|access-date=8 March 2021|website=vaalikone.yle.fi|language=fi}} In the same year, Suomela was also a candidate for the European Parliament but was not elected.{{Cite web|title=Tulospalvelu {{!}} Eurovaalit 2019 {{!}} Iltalehti|url=https://www.iltalehti.fi/eurovaalit-2019/tulospalvelu|access-date=8 March 2021|website=www.iltalehti.fi|language=fi}}
In the parliamentary election 2023, Suomela failed to get reelected but said she's planning to run in the next election. After her mandate as an MP expired, she resumed her studies at the University of Tampere.{{Cite web |date=13 April 2023 |title=Eduskunnasta pudonnut Iiris Suomela kertoo olleensa uupunut monta vuotta: ”Nyt tauko tulee pakolla ja ihan hyvä niin” |url=https://www.is.fi/politiikka/art-2000009513537.html |access-date=25 March 2024 |website=Ilta-Sanomat |language=fi}}
Personal life and family
Suomela's partner is entrepreneur and former politician Matti Parpala.{{Cite web|title="Hallituksessa ei olla, jos ei tehdä, mitä on sovittu" – Vihreät saa Iiris Suomelasta johtajan, joka vaatii feminististä politiikkaa ja edelläkävijyyttä ilmastoasioissa|url=https://www.hs.fi/politiikka/art-2000008308092.html|work=Helsingin Sanomat|language=fi|date=6 October 2022|access-date=16 February 2022}} They had a child in November 2020.{{Cite web|title=Kansanedustaja Iiris Suomelan vauva syntyi - "paras joululahja otti reilusti etumatkaa"|url=https://www.iltalehti.fi/politiikka/a/3fc11bba-8ee7-494d-8543-16cba5116f65|work=Iltalehti|language=fi|date=17 November 2020|access-date=16 February 2022}}
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Suomela, Iiris}}
Category:Politicians from Tampere
Category:Green League politicians
Category:Members of the Parliament of Finland (2019–2023)
Category:21st-century Finnish women politicians
Category:Women members of the Parliament of Finland
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