Kaarlo Juho Ståhlberg

Kaarlo Juho Ståhlberg [ kɑ ː rlɔ juhɔ sto ː lbærj ] ( born January 28, 1865 in Suomussalmi, † September 22, 1952 in Helsinki) was the first President of Finland.

A lawyer by profession, Ståhlberg was during many legislatures member of the Finnish parliament and the Reichstag in the country and there represented the Progress Party ( the Liberal Party of Finland ). From 1908 to 1918 he taught as a professor of administrative law at the University of Helsinki and led from 1918 to 1919 the chair of the Supreme Administrative Court of Finland, until he was elected the first President of the Republic of Finland, where he, supported by liberals, social democrats and the Agrarian Party against the former Regent Gustaf Mannerheim was able to prevail, which was based on the right circles. Ståhlberg remained until 1925 in the office and then opted not to run again in order to set an example for the future. He now devoted himself to the administration of justice, especially the drafting of new laws. In the presidential elections in 1931 and 1937, however, he ran again but was defeated in 1931 Pehr Evind Svinhufvud in the third ballot and just missed in 1937 on the first ballot an absolute majority by one vote.