“The expectations are quite high for the successor,” said Juhana Aunesluoma, a professor of political history at the University of Helsinki.

Finland shares an 1335-kilometre border with Russia, along with a combative history. The neighbours have fought numerous wars through the centuries, and Finns have strong memories of the 1939 Winter War and World War II, when their country fought the Soviet Union and lost territory. With the war in Ukraine continuing and Finnish officials accusing Russia of efforts to destabilise their country, analysts say that security is the primary issue on voters’ minds.

That is why, they say, voters are looking for a president with the broadest possible experience in foreign policy. The candidate pool reflects that.

“Even the liberal candidates have adopted a line that stresses military preparedness and border security,” said Johanna Vuorelma, a researcher at the University of Helsinki’s Centre for European Studies.

Haavisto is making his third presidential run after losing to Niinistö in the past two elections. A founder of the centre-left Greens Party, Haavisto first ran for parliament in 1987 and has been a staple of Finnish politics since, serving as a lawmaker, a UN official and in several government roles. Most recently, he was Finland’s foreign minister from 2019 to 2023.

Stubb is also a former foreign minister and a former prime minister. A prominent member of the centre right, he left Finnish politics in 2017 and swore not to return, but he has said that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine changed his mind.

The candidates agree on most foreign policy matters, including NATO membership, securing the country’s border with Russia and how to handle Moscow.

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That has made the differences in their personalities all the more important to voters, according to analysts. Since the campaign season got into full swing last summer, the candidates have toured Finland to meet voters at schools, gas stations, shopping malls and markets. Stubb, an Ironman triathlete, has often appeared at sporting events. Haavisto has adopted the stage name “DJ Pexi” and spun records at student events to appeal to younger voters.

Debates have been dignified and polite, a contrast to parliamentary election campaigns, which are often rowdy. Both Haavisto and Stubb have cast themselves as unifiers during the campaign, most likely because of expectations that the election will go to a runoff.

Voter turnout in Finland, a country of 5.6 million people, has tended to be about or above 70 per cent for presidential elections. More than 1.8 million Finns, or 44 per cent of the country’s eligible voters, have cast their ballots in early voting, according to preliminary data.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.