Magdalena Andersson set to return as prime minister after her bloc secures razor-thin lead
Sweden’s centre-Left opposition bloc defeated the ruling Right-wing coalition in a razor-thin general election, Sweden’s SVT public broadcaster announced on Wednesday.
With 99 per cent of the votes counted, Magdalena Andersson, the former prime minister, was on track to win 175 seats in the Riksdag, the 349-seat parliament, putting it on course to form the next government.
According to SVT’s projection, the incumbent prime minister Ulf Kristersson’s Right-wing bloc appeared to lack the votes to overcome the centre-Left’s lead of about 26,000 ballots.
“The likelihood of a turnaround at this stage is so low that we can confidently state that the opposition will secure the most seats in this election,” SVT said.
The projected result marks a change in government and could halt the governing coalition’s push for tougher policies on migration and gang violence.
Mr Kristersson’s bloc is formed of the Moderates, the Christian Democrats and the Liberals, with a supporting role from the Sweden Democrats (SD), a party founded in the 1980s with roots in extremist neo-Nazi movements.
Although the SDs have not formally been part of the government, the party has supported Mr Kristersson’s administration on anti-migrant laws and criminal justice reforms that helped reduce net immigration to its lowest levels since 1984, according to official figures.
Before the election, Mr Kristersson pledged to bring the SDs, led by Jimmie Åkesson, into government for the first time if his coalition retained power.
In 2022, the SDs gained 20.5 per cent of the vote, making them the largest party on the Right.
Mr Kristersson argued that the party can be trusted, citing its support for the government’s tougher approach to immigration and violent crime.
Ms Andersson, who previously served as prime minister and oversaw Sweden’s application to join Nato, now faces the task of bridging ideological differences within her own bloc, which includes both hard-Left and centrist parties, analysts have said.
According to SVT, voters identified peace and security, the future of European democracy, climate change and the economy among the election’s most significant issues.
Ms Andersson has previously warned that the influence of the Sweden Democrats, who she has described as “extremist”, would not necessarily disappear even if her bloc won, especially if they won by a narrow margin.
“The hate that they have spread through this election, and if they would become ministers and use their platforms as ministers to spread hate? Well, we’ll see if the Swedish people are very tempted on that,” she said.
Sweden’s election authority is still counting late incoming ballots from home and overseas, and has said the process could continue until Thursday.
The country is split into two major political blocs: one with four parties on the right and another with four parties on the left.
The final distribution of seats will determine whether Ms Andersson can secure enough parliamentary support to form a government.
