145,000 people voted on the first day early voting was possible, August 26. It is more than ever before and a full 38 percent more than the last election, when it finally turned out that 48 percent of the electorate cast early votes - that record also looks set to be broken this year: the electoral authority records 3.64 million early votes received up to and including Saturday.
- It has increased every election since early voting was introduced in 2006. One reason is that you can vote anywhere. There are many who vote early who do not vote in their own premises, nor always in their own home municipality, says Anna Nyqvist, head of office at the Electoral Authority.
It is possible to vote early up to and including election day, September 13, anywhere in the country. New for this year is that you do not need to bring any voter card with you, neither the physical one nor the new digital ones that a significant majority have received instead - a valid identity document is enough.
Votes cast elsewhere are sent to the polling station itself, and right up until the polling stations close at 8 p.m. on election day, there is the possibility to undo one's vote.
- Then you have to go to your own polling station, the one that is on your voting card, and speak up. The voice receiver will then replace your old voice with your new one.
You can only repent once, and you can only do so on election day in your own polling station. However, it is very rare for voters to regret it, only 7,626 people regretted their vote in the 2022 election, according to the Swedish Electoral Authority.
It is not possible to regret it by early voting again, then both votes are declared invalid because the election officials do not know which vote should apply. Early votes and foreign votes that do not arrive at the polling station in time are counted on the Wednesday after election day.
It is difficult to say what this year's turnout will look like, but political scientist Tommy Möller sees tendencies that indicate that it will be high.
- We know from research that the more exciting the fight for government power is, the higher the turnout. In addition to dramaturgy and moments of tension, which come from the fact that we also have proportional elections and block politics, Sweden has long had a policy that promotes democracy, says Tommy Möller.
He mentions simplified processes, expanded early voting and generous with information. In addition, an unusually strong social norm formation about being a good citizen is to also take responsibility and vote - those who cannot make up their minds can vote blankly.
Voter turnout in Sweden is generally high. In the 2022 parliamentary election, 84.2 percent of those eligible to vote took part - among the highest in the world, but a long way from the 1973 peak of 90.5 percent. In the shadow of the fine figures for the turnout, inequalities are hidden.
In the country, it varied from a low of 40 to a maximum of 96 percent in 2022. For example, in suburban areas, falling numbers in the last election seemed to have a direct connection to deteriorating results for S, according to Möller.
- It looks like it will be a more even election than seen in the last four years, which is not entirely surprising because historically it tends to tighten up towards the end. It also seems that an unusually large number of voters were undecided this year.
