Svalbard Government

What is the capital of Svalbard?

Country Name	Svalbard (sometimes referred to as Spitsbergen, the largest island in the archipelago)
Full Country Name	none
Etymology- history of name	12th century Norse accounts speak of the discovery of a "Svalbard" - literally "cold shores" - but they may have referred to Jan Mayen island or eastern Greenland; the archipelago was traditionally known as Spitsbergen, but Norway renamed it Svalbard in the 1920s when it assumed sovereignty of the islands
Government Type	non-self-governing territory of Norway
Capital Name	Longyearbyen
Capital - geographic coordinate	78 13 N, 15 38 E
Capital Time Difference	UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)
Daylight Savings Time	+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
Independence	none (territory of Norway)
Dependency Status	territory of Norway; administered by the Polar Department of the Ministry of Justice, through a governor (sysselmann) residing in Longyearbyen, Spitsbergen; by treaty (9 February 1920), sovereignty was awarded to Norway

Svalbard Capital City Map

Source: Google Maps

Svalbard Government and Politics

Who is the president of Svalbard?

Executive Branch:	chief of state: King HARALD V of Norway (since 17 January 1991); Heir Apparent Crown Prince Haakon MAGNUS (son of the king, born 20 July 1973) head of government: Governor Lars FAUSE (since 24 June 2021); Vice Governor Solvi ELVEDAHL (since 1 May 2020) elections/appointments: none; the monarchy is hereditary; governor and assistant governor responsible to the Polar Department of the Ministry of Justice
Citizenship Criteria:	see Norway
Legal System:	only the laws of Norway made explicitly applicable to Svalbard have effect there; the Svalbard Act and the Svalbard Environmental Protection Act, and certain regulations, apply only to Svalbard; the Spitsbergen Treaty and the Svalbard Treaty grant certain rights to citizens and corporations of signatory nations; as of June 2017, 45 nations had ratified the Svalbard Treaty
Legislative Branch:	description: unicameral Longyearbyen Community Council (15 seats; members directly elected by majority vote to serve 4-year-terms); note - the Council acts very much like a Norwegian municipality, responsible for infrastructure and utilities, including power, land-use and community planning, education, and child welfare; however, healthcare services are provided by the state elections: last held on 9 October 2023 (next to be held in October 2027) election results: seats by party - Liberal 7, Labor 3, Social Liberal 3, Conservative 2
Judicial Branch:	highest court(s): none; note - Svalbard is subordinate to Norway's Nord-Troms District Court and Halogaland Court of Appeal, both located in Tromso
Political Parties and Leaders:	Conservative [Celine ANDERSSEN] Green [Pal BERG] Labor [Arild OLSEN] Liberal [Terje AUVENIK] Progress [Jorn DYBDAHL] Social Liberals []
International Organization Participation:	none

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