Høyre

(also, Conservative Party), a Norwegian political party. The Høyre was formed in 1884 as a party of the big industrial and financial bourgeoisie and of the upper levels of the bureaucracy.

Leading party figures of the late 19th and early 20th centuries were F. Stang, E. Stang, and G. F. Hagerup; a more recent figure of note is C. J. Hambro, who served as party chairman from 1926 to 1934 and from 1945 to 1954. From 1884 to 1928 governments were formed alternately by the Høyre and Venstre parties, the former initiating numerous laws and actions directed against the workers. During the fascist German occupation of Norway, representatives of the Høyre formed a government in exile.

In the mid-1960’s and early 1970’s members of the Høyre held a number of important posts in coalition governments. The party’s leaders have repeatedly stated that in domestic affairs they support private enterprise and a democracy of property owners; in foreign affairs they favor entry into the Common Market and an active involvement in NATO. In the 1977 elections the Høyre won 41 seats out of 155 in the Storting. As of 1976, the party had approximately 105,000 members. E. Norvik was elected chairman in 1974. In 1975, the Høyre had 46 press organs, with a total circulation of 750,000; the most important organs are the newspapers Morgenbladet and Aftenposten.