Quote:

http://news.yahoo.com/iceland-president-....

REYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) — Iceland's President Olafur Ragnar Grimsson, who wielded the political power of his traditionally ceremonial office and rejected a deal that would have put taxpayers on the hook for $5 billion to Britain and the Netherlands, has been re-elected to a fifth term.

The vote makes him the longest-serving president in Icelandic history. Heavily criticized after the financial crisis for cheerleading the overheated business sector, he earned back support from ordinary Icelanders and became a symbol of defiance by refusing to sign legislation that would have made taxpayers pay back British and Dutch deposits in a failed online bank.

The election Saturday hinged in large part on how politically active the president should be. Iceland is a parliamentary democracy in which the president has traditionally been seen as a figurehead. However, the president can refuse to sign into law bills passed by parliament, triggering a voter referendum. Grimsson was the first president to use that power.

Grimsson took 52.8 per cent of the vote. Closest challenger Thora Arnordsdottir, who ran on a platform that the president should not have political views and play an active role in promoting business, had 33.2 per cent...