The leading candidates from both political camps in Sweden agree on at least one issue. Before you negotiate with anyone, there must be clarity about the result of this Reichstag election. "One step at a time," said incumbent Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson before a meeting with the leadership of his Moderate Party the day after the election.
Kristersson says he will first wait for the official final result and then hold a series of discussions. "I'll take it easy. Because we have a stable incumbent government. And then I'll get in touch as soon as I see how things can proceed."
That means: Kristersson continues to hope for a viable alliance between his bourgeois camp and the right-wing populist Sweden Democrats. According to preliminary results, with a good 17 percent, they only come in third place behind the Social Democrats and Kristersson's Moderates.
A wafer-thin majority for the opposition
The red-green opposition sees the task of forming a government with former Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson. Because your Social Democrats and the smaller parties of the left camp currently have 176 of the 349 seats and thus a wafer-thin majority.
But Andersson also urged patience on election night: "We have to wait for the final election results before we can say exactly how Sweden will be governed."
According to the electoral authority, this will not be known until Wednesday at the earliest. The last foreign votes will be counted on this day. And they could still change something, because according to the broadcaster SVT, less than 29,000 votes separate the two party blocs.
The General Secretary of the Social Democrats, Tobias Baudin, expressed confidence on Swedish television this morning: "We have to see on Wednesday how the people voted." On this basis, a government will be formed with Andersson as Prime Minister. "It won't be easy, but it's never been that way for us. We've done it many times in the past."
Hope for ability to act
In order to govern, Andersson would have to work with all three smaller parties in the red-green camp. It won't actually be easy: The Center Party and the Left Party in particular are far apart politically.
No matter who ultimately governs: For Sweden's parliamentary speaker Andreas Norlen from the Moderate Party, one thing matters most: a new government must be able to act.
“It is important that the situation from 2018 to 2022 is not repeated,” says Norlen. At that time, the Reichstag confirmed the Prime Minister, but then rejected his political plans and budget. "The overall picture has to be right so that we have a head of government and a government that can actually govern Sweden."
“It will be an exciting autumn”
Many in Stockholm are expecting difficult negotiations: "I hope that there will be a red-green government, but I fear that things will continue as before," says a passer-by. Another, however, is certain: "I think the matter is as good as decided. We will get a left-wing populist government that is supported by the Greens."
Some people saw the government's defeat coming: "I'm not surprised that the right-wing conservative bloc lost. That was pretty clear beforehand. However, I didn't think it would be so close."
“It will definitely be a while before we have a government,” says another passer-by. "It's going to be an exciting autumn." There should be clarity about the election winner on Wednesday. There is probably still no clarity about Sweden's next government for a long time.
