Who runs local government in Iceland?
Iceland has a single tier of local government: 62 municipalities on 1 January 2026, many very small. Mergers, often approved by local referendums, have halved their number since 2000. There is no regional elected tier and no customary authority.
Iceland · Unitary parliamentary republic · Northern Europe
The levels of government below the nation
| Level | How it is chosen | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Municipalities (sveitarfélög, 62 in 2026) | Municipal council elected every four years (last May 2026); council chooses a mayor or hires a manager (bæjarstjóri/sveitarstjóri) | Primary schools, preschools, social services, services for disabled people, planning, local roads, water. |
Three questions about local power in Iceland
Are local leaders elected?
Councillors are elected every four years. The mayor can be a councillor or an appointed professional manager; in Reykjavík the mayor is chosen by the council majority.
Which laws set up local government?
The Constitution (Article 78) protects municipal self-government; the Local Government Act 138/2011 sets the details. Neighbourhood councils exist by council decision.
Who are local leaders accountable to?
Voters; the ministry responsible for local government supervises legality; municipal finances are checked by a Local Government Finance Supervisory Committee; courts.
Traditional and customary authority
No customary authority. Iceland's local units, the hreppar, date back to the Middle Ages and organised poor relief among farms; the Evangelical Lutheran National Church is protected by the Constitution and has elected parish committees, but neither has local government power today.
Community and neighbourhood power
Residents' associations exist in Reykjavík's districts, and the city runs neighbourhood councils (hverfisráð) and an online participatory budgeting scheme where residents vote on local projects. Some merged municipalities keep local committees for former villages.
Points to know
- Municipalities fell from 124 in 2000 to 62 by 2026, mostly through voluntary mergers approved in local votes.
- Reykjavík has about a third of Iceland's population, so one municipality dominates.
- Foreign residents can vote in local elections after a period of residence.
Local terms
- Sveitarfélag
- Municipality, the only tier of local government.
- Hreppur
- A historic rural district that organised poor relief; some municipalities still use the name.
Sources
- Constitution of Iceland (1944, rev. 2013), Constitute Project, checked 14 October 2026
- Inhabitants on 1 January 2026 (news release, 12 March 2026), Statistics Iceland, checked 14 October 2026
- Iceland: country profile (territorial organisation, responsibilities, finance), OECD–UCLG World Observatory on Subnational Government Finance and Investment (SNG-WOFI), checked 14 October 2026
- Iceland: monitoring of the European Charter of Local Self-Government (2024 report), Council of Europe Congress of Local and Regional Authorities (CARTA-MONITOR), checked 14 October 2026
See also: Iceland's official statistics and leaders · the 10 levels of power.