Four celebration cakes decorated with red roses were carried into the Social Democrats’ headquarters on Thursday, and the room cheered. The preliminary count from Sunday’s election had finally finished. The left-leaning opposition parties held 176 seats, a narrow majority over the right-leaning Tidö coalition and its far-right ally, the Sweden Democrats. Just 50,359 votes separated the two blocs.
Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, the Moderates leader, resigned after four years in office. In his letter he asked to be relieved of his duties so the speaker, Andreas Norlén, could begin work on a new government. Magdalena Andersson, who preceded Kristersson as prime minister, now tries to form one.
“The Swedish people have voted for a new direction for our country, voted for unity and against division,” Andersson said in her victory speech. She named the climate crisis, schools, healthcare, elderly care and immigration policy as priorities.
A defeat for the far right
Before the vote some feared a turning point for the far right, since Kristersson had promised the Sweden Democrats key ministerial posts if his coalition won. The opposite happened. The Sweden Democrats lost support for the first time in a general election since their founding and slipped from Sweden’s second biggest party to third.
The Social Democrats stay the largest party, but with record low support. Andersson, prime minister from November 2021 to October 2022, is understood to be reaching out to every opposition party except the Sweden Democrats.
Coalition arithmetic
Earlier on Thursday she invited the Left, Centre and Green parties to initial talks. Weeks of negotiation lie ahead, and the hardest pairing is likely Centre and Left. The Centre party has ruled out governing with the Left; the Left wants a seat in government in return for its help. The Left backs a billionaire tax, the Greens oppose nuclear energy, and the Centre wants tax cuts while the other three favour increases.
Left leader Nooshi Dadgostar said Swedes had “voted away Tidö and given us a clear mandate for change.” Centre leader Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist said Sweden was “entering a new political phase” and promised her party would be a constructive force with policies “anchored in the middle.”
The Liberals and Christian Democrats have ruled out working with the left, though Kristersson’s letter appeared to leave a door open, calling for “constructive openness” from all parties. A Moderate and Social Democrat coalition is extremely unlikely given Swedish tradition. Minority governments are common in Sweden, and governments often strike agreements outside formal coalitions. The Sweden Democrats were not officially in the last government, yet held considerable sway over its budget and policies.
The Social Democrats are understood to plan changes to the previous government’s immigration, integration and climate policies. But their own positions have moved right in recent years, especially on immigration and crime, so much of the old government’s legacy is likely to stay.
Sources
- Sweden’s PM resigns after centre-left bloc wins slim majority in election
- Sweden's left-wing bloc wins general election by slim margin
