Norway's Labor Party claims victory in general election

OSLO, Norway (AP) — Norway’s Labor Party of Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre has claimed victory in Monday’s general election with most votes now counted and with a narrow but clear win by the center-left block over the right-wing parties.

Rapturous cheering erupted in Oslo on Monday night as Labor supporters gathered to celebrate a closely fought campaign in which the future of a wealth tax that dates to the late 19th century has been a central issue.

Addressing the crowd, Prime Minister Gahr Støre thanked his supporters and said the victory showed it's possible for Social Democratic parties to win elections even with right-wing forces on the rise in Europe, according to broadcaster VG.

A short while earlier, Conservative leader Erna Solberg apologized for the dismal performance of her party, which fell to third place in parliament behind the right-wing populist Progress Party that saw its best result ever in a national election.

Addressing supporters, Progress Party leader Sylvi Listhaug was pleased with her party’s result but lamented what she called “four tough years ahead for people and businesses.”

About 4.3 million people in the Scandinavian nation were eligible to vote for the new 169-member parliament, or Storting. With almost all votes now counted, center-left parties have won just over the 85 seats needed to form a majority.

Final results are expected Tuesday, and they are likely to be followed by weeks of negotiations to build a coalition and agree on Cabinet positions before King Harald can swear in a new government.

Monday's result was never expected to have major implications for Norway’s foreign policy. The country is a stalwart member of NATO and a strong supporter of Ukraine’s defense against Russia, with which it has a border in the Arctic north. It isn't a member of the European Union but has close economic ties with the 27-nation bloc.

Norway is one of the richest countries in the world. It has a generous welfare state, sits on billions of barrels of oil and gas, and has one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds, worth around 20 trillion kroner ($2 trillion). Gross domestic product per person is the sixth-highest in the world, one place above the U.S., according to the International Monetary Fund.

It is also one of the world’s most egalitarian countries, sharing its wealth much more evenly than many others.

Labor campaigned to keep the wealth tax that has been a mainstay of Norwegian policy since 1892 — a levy of up to 1.1% on assets and shares worth more than 1.76 million kroner (around $176,000), though there are various reductions and discounts. Labor said that scrapping it would cost 34 billion kroner ($3.3 billion) per year.

Of rivals on the right, the Conservatives want the tax reduced and the Progress Party of Sylvi Listhaug, which calls for lower taxes and more immigration controls, wants it scrapped.

The Progress Party has been bolstered by an energetic social media campaign, driven by youthful influencers who have inspired younger voters against the wealth tax.

“I think it is fair that the most wealthy among us pay their contribution,” Gahr Støre said after he voted on Monday. “It’s been the parties of the right who wanted to take that entirely away, benefiting 1% of the population."

"I think that goes against the deep sense of fairness and solidarity from Norwegians,” he said.

Party leader Erna Solberg speaks during the Conservative Party's election vigil at the Radisson Blu Scandinavia Hotel during the 2025 general election, in Oslo, Norway, Monday, Sept. 8, 2025. (Heiko Junge/NTB Scanpix via AP)

Sylvi Listhaug at The Progress Party's election vigil at Hotel Bristol during the 2025 general election in Oslo, Norway, Monday, Sept. 2025. (Cornelius Poppe/NTB Scanpix via AP)

Party leader Jonas Gahr Støre at the Labour Party's election vigil at the People's House during the 2025 general election, in Oslo, Norway, Monday, Sept. 8, 2025. (Javad Parsa/NTB Scanpix via AP)

Party leader Jonas Gahr Støre speaks during the Labour Party's election vigil at the People's House during the 2025 general election, in Oslo, Norway, Monday, Sept. 8, 2025. (Ole Berg-Rusten/NTB Scanpix via AP)

Finance Minister Jens Stoltenberg at the Labour Party's election vigil at the People's House during the 2025 general election in Oslo, Norway, Monday, Sept. 8, 2025. (Ole Berg-Rusten/NTB Scanpix via AP)

The Labour Party's election vigil at the People's House during the 2025 general election in Oslo, Norway, Monday, Sept. 8, 2025. (Javad Parsa/NTB Scanpix via AP)

Dag-Inge Ulstein, Party leader of the Christian Democratic Party, during a statement on Norway’s Parliamentary elections in Oslo, Norway, Monday, Sept. 8, 2025. (Jonas Faeste Laksekjon/NTB Scanpix via AP)

A voter casts his vote at Norway’s Parliamentary elections in Oslo, Norway, Monday, Sept. 8, 2025. (Javad Parsa/NTB Scanpix via AP)

Labor Party leader Jonas Gahr Store leaves a polling booth during Norway’s Parliamentary elections in Oslo, Norway, Monday, Sept. 8, 2025. (Javad Parsa/NTB Scanpix via AP)

Hoyre Party leader Erna Solberg casts her vote at Norway’s Parliamentary elections in Bergen, Norway, Monday, Sept. 8, 2025. (Silje Katrine Robinson/NTB Scanpix via AP)

Labor Party leader Jonas Gahr Store casts his vote at Norway’s Parliamentary elections in Oslo, Norway, Monday, Sept. 8, 2025. (Javad Parsa/NTB Scanpix via AP)

Progress Party (Frp) leader Sylvi Listhaug casts her vote at Norway’s Parliamentary elections in Oslo, Norway, Monday, Sept. 8, 2025. (Lise Aserud/NTB Scanpix via AP)

Campaign volunteers from the Labour Party stand on the sidewalk looking for people to engage with in Oslo, Sunday, Sept. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Kostya Manenkov)

Campaign volunteers from the Labour Party, wearing red, engage with people near the Norwegian Parliament building in Oslo, Sunday, Sept. 7, 2025. (AP Photo/Kostya Manenkov)

Erna Solberg chairwoman of Norway's Hoyre party, left, and Jonas Gahr Store, right, chairman of Norway's Ap party during a tv debate in Oslo, Norway, Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025. (Stian Lysberg Solum/NTB Scanpix via AP)

Sylvi Listhaug chairwoman of Norway's Frp party, left, and Dag-Inge Ulstein, right, chairman of Norway's KrF party during a tv debate in Oslo, Norway, Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2025. (Stian Lysberg Solum/NTB Scanpix via AP)

Jonas Gahr Store, right, chairman of Norway's Ap party buys food during an election tour in Stavanger, Norway, Wednesday, Sept. 3, 2025. (Stian Lysberg Solum/NTB Scanpix via AP)

DENVER (AP) — Brent Burns took a wayward stick to the face while playing for San Jose in October 2013 that ended up costing him teeth and time on the ice.

Since his return — Nov. 21, 2013, to be precise — he's been a permanent fixture in every lineup. Burns, now 41 years old and with the Colorado Avalanche, is set to play in his 1,000th straight regular-season game Saturday at Dallas.

The bearded blueliner has skated through the bumps and bruises that come with delivering checks and deflecting slap shots. So much so that Avalanche coach Jared Bednar can’t wait to one day sit down with Burns and discuss all the ailments that may have kept many a player sidelined for days, weeks and maybe even months.

“He plays through them like it’s not a big deal,” said Bednar, whose team currently owns the NHL's top seed with eight games remaining, including the pivotal contest with the Stars (six points back). “(The streak) is an incredible accomplishment. It’s hard to believe.”

For Burns, it's a streak that's involved plenty of good fortune along the way.

“You've got pucks flying around your head that you don’t see, skates popping up, guys falling on the ice,” Burns said Friday after practice. "There are so many little things that happen 100 times a game. Or you look at your visor after a game, it’s all marked up. It’s a tough game.

"It’s special to think back about some of the games that I went through that I probably shouldn’t have been (in), but I think that’s what makes it special, too. ... A lot of luck — probably why I hate talking about it.”

Burns, who turned 41 on March 9, joined the Avalanche on a one-year deal this season to chase the only thing missing from his resume — a Stanley Cup title.

He's become another leader/mentor on the Avalanche. He still chips in goals, too, on a high-scoring team that boasts Nathan MacKinnon, Cale Makar and Martin Necas. Burns has 11 tallies this season, joining Hall of Famer Nicklas Lidstrom as the only defensemen in league history to notch double-digit goals at 40 or older.

But Burns' specialty remains putting his 6-foot-5, 228-pound frame to good use on opponents who venture into his territory. That’s what makes his streak so remarkable — all the punishment he dishes out and takes. He’s closing in on the all-time ironman streak held by forward Phil Kessel, who played in 1,064 consecutive regular-season games from Nov. 3, 2009, to April 13, 2023.

“What Phil did was incredible,” Burns said. “He’s such a cool character to have that (record), too."

It’s a streak Avalanche captain Gabriel Landeskog fully appreciates. Landeskog missed three full regular seasons after helping the Avalanche to the 2022 Stanley Cup title because of a lingering knee injury.

“He comes to the rink with a great attitude," Landeskog explained. "He wants to be here. He’s excited to come to work.”

Burns also arrives to the rink lugging around his military-style backpack that’s stuffed with everything necessary to keep him on skates. There’s a cloud of mystery surrounding the precise contents of the heavy pack, though. Whatever it may contain — rumors of recovery gear to his own coffee setup — there's no denying it's become a healing elixir. Burns is in his 22nd NHL season and about to play in his 1,572nd career contest Saturday. The 2016-17 Norris Trophy winner is still averaging nearly 19 minutes a game and has 83 blocked shots this season.

The streak certainly impresses goaltender Scott Wedgewood.

“In my position alone, you’ll do something one game and your hip locks up a little bit,” Wedgewood said. “It’s like, ‘Thank God, I’m not playing the next one. It feels like crap right now.’

“That happens 15 times a year, just on me, let alone taking body checks and slap shots. Playing as much as he does now at that age, keeping that body fresh and everything? He probably wouldn’t be the one to tell you, but he’s probably played through thousands of different nuances.”

Burns made his NHL debut on Oct. 8, 2003, with Minnesota after being a first-round pick by the Wild. He spent seven seasons with Minnesota, 11 in San Jose and three more in Carolina before joining Colorado.

His lone appearance in the Stanley Cup final was in 2016 with the Sharks, where they lost in six games to the Pittsburgh Penguins. Burns has played in 135 career playoff contests.

His current games streak started Nov. 21, 2013 — he played right wing that season — when he returned from his injury and promptly scored a goal. In his 999th straight game Wednesday against Vancouver, he delivered a goal and an assist to become the fifth different defensemen to notch a 30-point season while in their 40s.

“It’s just ridiculous,” Makar said of the streak before suffering an upper-body injury Monday against Calgary that will keep him out a few games. “For him to be able to go out there every night and make an impact, and not just float around and do the minimum, is pretty spectacular, especially at his age.”

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Washington Capitals center Dylan Strome (17) passes the puck against Colorado Avalanche defenseman Brent Burns (84) during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Sunday, March 22, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Nick Wass)

Colorado Avalanche defenseman Brent Burns, left, drives past Winnipeg Jets defenseman Dylan Samberg in the third period of an NHL hockey game Saturday, March 28, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Colorado Avalanche defenseman Brent Burns (84) smiles at his teammates at the end of the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks, Friday, March 20, 2026, in Chicago. (AP Photo/Erin Hooley)