Pello

Pello [ˈpɛlːɔ] (until 1949 Turtola) is a municipality in the Finnish part of Lapland. It lies on the middle reaches of the Tornionjoki River, which forms the border with Sweden. The population is exclusively Finnish-speaking. On the Swedish side is the village of the same name, Pello.

In addition to the eponymous main town of Pello, the municipality includes several small villages lined up along the few roads. To the south of Pello on the road to Kemi are the settlements of Lehmivaara and Mämmilä, the former main village of Turtola, and the village of Juoksenki, which is the southernmost village in the municipality and is located exactly at the level of the Arctic Circle and used to belong to Juoksengi, which is now Swedish. Towards the east are the settlements of Saukkoriipi, Konttajärvi, Ruuhijärvi and Rattosjärvi (on the Meltauksentie road), as well as Lankojärvi, Sirkkakoski and Lampsijärvi. North of the centre are the villages of Orajärvi, Lempeä and Jarhois.

European Road 8 from Turku to Tromsø crosses the Arctic Circle at Juoksenki. There is a petrol station, a rest stop and a hostel here.

Coat of arms

Description: In blue three (1;2) six-pointed silver stars over silver trefoil.

Politics

As is generally the case in the rural areas of Northern Finland, the Centre Party is the strongest political force in Pello. In the 2008 local elections, it received exactly half of the votes and has an absolute majority in the municipal council, the highest decision-making body in local affairs, with 15 of 27 seats. The second strongest force is the Left Alliance, which, as is generally the case in Lapland, is disproportionately well represented. It won almost a quarter of the votes and has six seats in the local council. The Social Democrats received 16.4% of the vote and four seats, while the conservative National Coalition Party, although one of the three major parties nationally, is barely significant in Pello, with a single-digit election result and two MPs.