Norwegian politics, Venstre | Left leader:

video>

VULKAN, OSLO (Nettavisen): The Liberal Party is struggling in the polls, and has long been below the threshold of four percent. Now the party is faced with an almost impossible task of being able to retain government power together with KrF and the Conservatives.

But Liberal Party leader Guri Melby denies that they have given up hope of winning the election.

– No, far from it. We have experienced standing in tough roofs before. We have experienced uphills, and we have also experienced that we have managed to succeed, Melby says to Nettavisen.

Also read: Erna Solberg believes in a miracle: – I think it is entirely possible

– Almost have to live with it

The Liberal Party is not alone in doing badly in the polls on the bourgeois side. The average of the national polls in July showed that the parties have lost as many as 184,000 voters to the red-green parties compared to the previous parliamentary elections.

– What do you think is the reason why you do so badly in the polls?

– Now we have been in power for eight years, three and a half of them in government. This means that you are also involved in issues that are not necessarily very popular. Among other things, we have handled a very demanding crisis, and we have always been very open that it is not certain that we will do everything right in this crisis, says Melby, and adds:

– It may well be that we do things that later turn out to be stupid, or that irritate people. So I almost think we have to live with the fact that when you are in power, there are things people can be critical of.

Also read: Crisis figures for Erna Solberg: 184,000 voters have turned their backs on the government

– Then it just has to be

– Does that mean that you have been too bad to sell your cases to the voters?

– It may be that we have, but you have to remember that I joined as Minister of State on 13 March 2020, the day after Norway closed down – and we have probably prioritized dealing with a pandemic rather than marketing our own policy in recent months. And I think that has been completely correct, the Liberal leader answers, and points out:

– So if we lose the election on that, then it just has to be. To deal with this crisis without major health consequences and without major consequences for the business community, has been absolutely crucial. It means a lot to how Norway will become as a society in the years to come.

– If the work we have done contributes to Norway recovering well through this crisis, then we will almost only have to live with the consequences of it, she says.

Also read: The Liberal Party and KrF want to stop the budget support for the Human Rights Service

– Have done it before

– But how will you manage to get over the barrier limit?

– Now we have had an intense summer where many in the Liberal Party have been on, and we see that we are creeping slowly but surely upwards in the polls. We know that we have managed to lift ourselves through an election campaign before, says Melby.

The barring limit is the minimum limit for how high support a political party must have in order to be awarded equalization mandates as seats in the Storting.

Despite the adversity in the poll, but the recent party leader that there are many in Norway who want the Liberal Party’s policy.

– So my job in the future will be to talk to as many people as possible, and show that we have the good answers, she says with a smile.