Sweden’s far-right make gains in tightly contested election, results too close to call
Sweden’s far-right make gains in tightly contested election, results too close to call
PUBLISHED MON, SEP 12 20227:39 AM EDTUPDATED MON, SEP 12 20229:25 AM EDT
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KEY POINTS
- With roughly 95% of the vote counted, a right-wing bloc of four parties led by Ulf Kristersson’s center-right Moderates has a total of 175 seats, while the four parties that support Andersson as prime minister are poised to win 174 seats.
- A conclusive result is not expected until Wednesday at the earliest, with mail-in ballots and votes from citizens living abroad still to be counted.
- Sweden has a reputation for being one of Europe’s most progressive states and consistently ranks among the happiest nations in the world.
Once a fringe party shunned by others across the political spectrum, preliminary results showed the Sweden Democrats received nearly 21% of the vote.
Maja Suslin | Afp | Getty Images
A group of right-wing political parties secured a razor-thin lead in Sweden’s general election, according to early results, and appear to be on course to defeat a left-wing bloc led by Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson.
Exit polls Sunday initially projected a narrow victory for Andersson’s ruling center-left Social Democrats and their allies, although the tally has since swung to the political right as partial results were released throughout the evening.
After roughly 95% of the vote had been counted Monday morning, a right-wing bloc of four parties, led by Ulf Kristersson’s center-right Moderates, had a total of 175 seats, with the anti-immigration Sweden Democrats party set to record its best election result yet.
The four parties that support Andersson as prime minister, meanwhile, looked poised to win 174 seats.
If these results are confirmed, it means the right-wing group of parties has secured a parliamentary majority which could pave the way for the bloc to try to form a government.
A conclusive result is not expected until Wednesday at the earliest, with mail-in ballots and votes from citizens living abroad still to be counted.
There are a total of eight parties (four on the right; four on the left) vying for seats in Sweden’s 349-seat parliament, or Riksdag.
