Väinö Tanner

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Väinö Tanner (March 12, 1881 – April 19, 1966) was a pioneer and leader in the Co-op Movement in Finland, and Prime Minister of Finland 1926-1927.

Tanner did not participate in the Finnish Civil War. When the war ended he became Finland's leading Social Democratic Party (SDP) politician, and a strong proponent of the parliamentary system. His main achievement was the rehabilitation of the SDP after the Civil War. Väinö Tanner served as Prime Minister (1926-1927), Minister of Finance (1937-1939), Foreign Minister (1939-1940), and after the Winter War Minister of Trade (1940-1942). This final move was due to Soviet pressure.

To accommodate the Soviet Union when the Continuation War ended, Väinö Tanner was tried for responsibility for the war in February 1946, and sentenced to five years and six months in prison.

After the Continuation War, and while still in prison, Tanner became the virtual leader of a faction of the SDP which had strong support from the USA. This faction eventually came out on top after a great deal internal party strife lasting for much of the 1940s.

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