Editing Politics of Norway (section)

=== Governments 1981–2005 ===
[[File:Kare Willoch 2009.jpg|thumb|[[Kåre Willoch]] ([[Conservative Party of Norway|Conservative Party]]) was Prime Minister from 1981 until 1986.]]
From 1981 to 1997, governments alternated between minority Labour governments and Conservative-led centre-right governments. The centre-right governments gained power in three out of four elections during this period (1981, 1985, 1989), whereas Labour toppled those governments twice between elections (1986, 1990) and stayed in power after one election (1993). Elections take place in September and governments change in October of election years.

[[Conservative Party of Norway|Conservative]] leader [[Kåre Willoch]] formed a [[minority government]] after the [[1981 Norwegian parliamentary election|election of 1981]]. In 1983, midway between elections, this government was expanded to a [[majority government|majority]] three-party [[coalition government|coalition]] of the Conservatives, the [[Centre Party (Norway)|Centre Party]] and the [[Christian Democratic Party (Norway)|Christian Democrats]]. In the [[1985 Norwegian parliamentary election|election of 1985]] the coalition lost its majority but stayed in office until 1986, when it stepped down after losing a parliamentary vote on [[petrol]] taxes.

[[Norwegian Labour Party|Labour]] leader [[Gro Harlem Brundtland]] served three periods as Prime Minister. First briefly from February 1981 until the election the same year, then from May 1986 to the [[1989 Norwegian parliamentary election|election of 1989]], and last from November 1990 until October 1996 when she decided to step out of domestic politics. Brundtland strongly influenced Norwegian politics and society during this period and was nicknamed the "national mother".

After the election of 1989 a centre-right coalition was formed with the same three parties as in 1983–1986, this time headed by Conservative leader [[Jan P. Syse]]. This coalition governed from 1989 to November 1990 when it collapsed from inside over the issue of Norwegian membership in the [[European Economic Area]].
[[File:Thorbjorn Jagland.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Thorbjørn Jagland]] (Labour) was Prime Minister 1996–97. He has later become [[Secretary General of the Council of Europe]].]]

When Brundtland resigned in 1996, Labour leader [[Thorbjørn Jagland]] formed a new Labour government that stayed in office until October 1997 when he, after the [[1997 Norwegian parliamentary election|September 1997 election]], declared that his government would step down because the Labour Party failed to win at least 36.9% of the national vote – the percentage Labour had won in the [[1993 Norwegian parliamentary election|1993 election]].

A three-party minority coalition of the [[Centre Party (Norway)|Centre]], [[Christian People's Party (Norway)|Christian Democratic]], and [[Venstre (Norway)|Liberal]] parties, headed by Christian Democrat Prime Minister [[Kjell Magne Bondevik]], moved into office in October 1997. That government fell in March 2000 over the issue of proposed natural gas plants, opposed by Bondevik due to their impact on climate change.

The Labour Party's [[Jens Stoltenberg]], a Brundtland protégé, took over in a minority Labour government but lost power in the [[2001 Norwegian parliamentary election|September 2001 election]] when Labour posted its worst performance since [[World War I]].

Bondevik once again became Prime Minister in 2001, this time as head of a minority coalition of the [[Conservative Party of Norway|Conservatives]], [[Christian People's Party (Norway)|Christian Democrats]] and [[Venstre (Norway)|Liberals]], a coalition dependent on support from the [[Progress Party (Norway)|Progress Party]]. This coalition government was the first to stay in office for a complete four-year election period since [[Per Borten]]'s coalition government of 1965–1969.