Sweden’s opposition secures narrow Riksdag majority as Kristersson resigns
Four left-leaning opposition parties won 176 of 349 seats, but government formation remains uncertain.
Sweden’s left-leaning opposition has secured a narrow three-seat majority in the Riksdag after the final count of Sunday’s national election, while Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson has announced his resignation.
The Swedish Election Authority said the four opposition parties won 176 of the parliament’s 349 seats. Parties forming or supporting the outgoing conservative-led government won 173.
The opposition’s lead was confirmed after late-arriving ballots, including votes from overseas, were counted. The result gives former prime minister Magdalena Andersson’s Social Democrats the position of largest single party, despite the party losing some support.
The result strengthens Andersson’s prospects of returning to the prime ministership, which she lost in 2022. It does not, however, determine who will lead the next government.
Negotiations are expected to be difficult because of tensions within the broad left-leaning bloc. Kristersson had led a three-party centre-right coalition that relied on outside support from the Sweden Democrats, an anti-immigration party with far-right roots that has moved towards the political mainstream.
