Sweden: a new vote by deputies next week to try to appoint a prime minister

Swedish MPs will vote again on Tuesday to try to appoint a prime minister, around the candidacy of the leader of the Center party, Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist, after the elections narrowly won by the left in September.

Although Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist is unlikely to win a majority, parliament speaker Andreas Norlen said it was essential to move forward and “have a vote”. He added that, if this vote does not succeed, he will turn to the outgoing Prime Minister, Ulf Kristersson, who is acting, to see if he could form a new government.

The left-wing opposition bloc won a three-seat majority over the right-wing bloc led by Ulf Kristersson in the September 13 elections. But the leader of the opposition, Magdalena Andersson, has twice given up on forming a government. In an attempt to break the deadlock, with neither left nor right coalitions securing a majority, the Parliament Speaker asked Thand Ringqvist to explore conditions for a “middle option”. Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist raised the idea of ​​a “center” government including the traditional parties, but excluding the Socialist Left Party and the Sweden Democrats, who are hostile to immigration.

Sweden, a country accustomed to these long negotiations

The Center Party has refused to collaborate with the Sweden Democrats, making it almost impossible for the right-wing bloc to gain a majority in parliament. And the Center refuses to support a government including the Left Party. The Speaker of Parliament can propose a candidate for prime minister four times, after which new elections must be called. A first attempt failed on October 15, when Magdalena Andersson, leader of the Social Democratic Party, failed to obtain the support of MPs.