Phoenix 24
A close election could transform parliamentary influence into direct executive power.
STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN
More than eight million Swedish voters are choosing the 349 members of the Riksdag in an election that could bring the Sweden Democrats into government for the first time. Preliminary results are expected after polling stations close, although coalition negotiations could continue for weeks.
Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson is seeking a second term with a centre-right alliance comprising his Moderate Party, the Christian Democrats and the Liberals. Since 2022, his minority government has depended on parliamentary support from the Sweden Democrats without granting the party ministerial positions.
Kristersson has now indicated that the nationalist and anti-immigration party could formally join a new administration. The Sweden Democrats received 20.5 percent of the vote in 2022 and became the largest party within the right-wing bloc. Their possible entry into government would complete a remarkable transition for a movement historically excluded because of its far-right and neo-Nazi origins.
Former prime minister Magdalena Andersson leads the opposition Social Democrats alongside the Centre Party, Greens and Left Party. A recent poll placed the centre-left bloc at 50.3 percent and the governing alliance at 47.9 percent, but the survival of the Liberals—measured slightly above the 4 percent parliamentary threshold—could determine the final balance.
Healthcare, immigration, crime, household finances and the economy have dominated the campaign. Political controversy has also focused on misinformation, personal attacks and allegations involving figures connected to the Sweden Democrats. More than half of eligible voters cast ballots in advance, reflecting Sweden’s traditionally high electoral participation.
The election is Sweden’s first since joining NATO in 2024 and arrives as the country reassesses security, migration and the future of its welfare model. Whatever the final result, the Sweden Democrats have already shifted the boundaries of acceptable political debate; the vote will determine whether that influence now extends directly into government.
Democracy reveals not only who governs, but which ideas have become governable.