Sweden’s centre-left opposition has won a narrow majority in the country’s national election, according to a complete vote count released on Thursday. The Swedish Election Authority reported that the four opposition parties secured 176 seats in the 349-seat Riksdag, Sweden’s parliament, in Sunday’s election. In contrast, the four parties that make up or support the outgoing conservative-led government won 173 seats.
Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, from the centre-right coalition, announced his resignation in a letter posted on X shortly after the final results were revealed.
Opposition leader Magdalena Andersson, a former prime minister, stated that “the Swedish people have voted for a new direction for our country, voted for cohesion and against division,” as reported by the Swedish news agency TT.
It remains unclear what kind of government Sweden, which has approximately 10.6 million inhabitants and is a member of the European Union, will have over the next four years.
Andersson aims to reclaim the prime minister’s position, which she lost in 2022. Her centre-left Social Democrats emerged as the largest single party with 99 seats, despite losing eight.
The opposition’s slight lead was initially uncertain but was confirmed after the counting of early votes that did not arrive at polling stations by Election Day, including overseas ballots.
Kristersson has led Sweden through a three-party, centre-right coalition that relied on outside support from the far-right Sweden Democrats, an anti-immigration party. He had even offered Cabinet positions to the Sweden Democrats if his governing coalition had won.
However, the results were disappointing for the Sweden Democrats, who dropped to third place behind Kristersson’s Moderates, securing 62 seats—11 fewer than in the previous parliament.
Andersson now faces the challenge of bridging differences within the opposition bloc. The Centre Party, which joined the left-leaning coalition because it does not want to govern with the Sweden Democrats, is also hesitant to partner with the Left Party, which is at the opposite end of the political spectrum. Any potential coalition that crosses traditional right-left lines would be complicated.
Despite these challenges, Sweden has broad political consensus on several significant issues, such as support for Ukraine and the decision to join NATO, with Sweden becoming the 32nd member in 2024.
This article used information from The Associated Press.
