by Simon Johnson and Anna Ringstrom
STOCKHOLM (Reuters) – Sweden’s Moderate Party leader Ulf Kristersson said Wednesday that he will begin work on forming a new government after incumbent Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson admitted that the Social Democrats lost last weekend’s general election.
Moderates, Sweden Democrats, Christian Democrats and Liberals are expected to together win 176 of the 349 seats in Parliament, according to the latest figures from the country’s electoral authority.
There are still some votes to count, but the outcome is unlikely to change significantly.
“Now I will try to form a new government that can make things happen,” Kristersson said in a video on her Instagram account.
The elections marked a turning point in Swedish politics with the Sweden Democrats, a white supremacist party with anti-immigration views ready to gain influence over government policy.
The success of the party, which has replaced Kristersson’s moderates as the country’s second-largest party, raises fears that Sweden’s tolerant and inclusive politics will become a thing of the past.
However, the party’s mantra that Sweden’s ills – particularly gang crimes – were the result of decades of overly generous immigration policies caught the attention of many voters.
Kristersson said he would form a government “for all Sweden and all its citizens”.
“There is a great disillusionment in society, fear of violence, concerns about the economy, the world is very uncertain and the political polarization in Sweden has become enormous,” he said. “So my message is, I want to unite, not divide.”
Although Kristersson’s party was smaller, Swedish Democratic leader Jimmie Akesson would not have the broad right support needed to overthrow the Social Democrats.
Kristersson is likely to try to form a government with the Christian Democrats and gain parliamentary support from the Sweden Democrats and Liberals.
source: Noticias
