2010 Swedish general election

2010 Swedish general election

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All 349 seats to the Riksdag 175 seats are needed for a majority
First party Second party Third party   Leader Mona Sahlin Fredrik Reinfeldt Peter Eriksson Maria Wetterstrand Party Social Democrats Moderate Green Alliance Red-Greens The Alliance Red-Greens Leader since 17 March 2007 25 October 2003 12 May 2002 Last election 130 97 19 Seats won 112 107 25 Seat change 18 10 6 Popular vote 1,827,497 1,791,766 437,435 Percentage 30.7% 30.1% 7.3% Swing 4.3% 3.9% 2.1%   Fourth party Fifth party Sixth party   Leader Jan Björklund Maud Olofsson Jimmie Åkesson Party Liberals Centre Sweden Democrats Alliance The Alliance The Alliance Leader since 7 September 2007 19 March 2001 7 May 2005 Last election 28 29 0 Seats won 24 23 20 Seat change 4 6 20 Popular vote 420,524 390,804 339,610 Percentage 7.1% 6.6% 5.7% Swing 0.4% 1.3% 3.7%   Seventh party Eighth party   Leader Lars Ohly Göran Hägglund Party Left Christian Democrats Alliance Red-Greens The Alliance Leader since 20 February 2004 3 April 2004 Last election 22 24 Seats won 19 19 Seat change 3 5 Popular vote 334,053 333,696 Percentage 5.6% 5.6% Swing 0.3% 1.0%
Largest party within each constituency and municipality Distribution of constituency and levelling seats and largest political bloc within each constituency Red-Social Democratic, Blue-Moderate
Prime Minister before election Fredrik Reinfeldt Moderate Elected Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt Moderate

General elections were held in

The Alliance received 49.27 percent of the votes (an increase by 1.03 pp from the previous election) and 173 seats in the parliament (a decrease by 5 seats and 2 short of an overall majority), while the Red-Greens received 43.60 percent of the vote (a decrease by 2.48 pp) and 156 seats (a decrease by 15 seats).^[1] The election also saw the nationalist Sweden Democrats entering parliament for the first time, as the sixth largest and only non-aligned of the eight parties elected to the parliament, by receiving 5.70 percent of the votes (an increase by 2.77 pp) and 20 seats.^[1] Both in terms of percentage share; 30.06%, and the actual vote; 1,791,766, the Moderate Party had its strongest election of the unicameral parliamentary era, narrowly missing out on beating the Social Democrats to become the largest party.^[2] The Alliance dominated the Stockholm capital region of the municipality and county and made further gains in South Sweden including narrowly flipping Malmö blue as well as winning pluralities in traditionally red towns such as Kalmar, Landskrona and Trelleborg.^[1]

The Alliance lost its

This was the first time in almost a century that a Swedish centre-right government that had served a full term was reelected.[4]

Campaign

This section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (October 2010)

One of the main campaign themes was the Economy of Sweden.^[5]

The

The parties already represented in the Swedish parliament, along with the Swedish television networks, excluded minor parties from the televised political debates. The excluded minor parties included the Sweden Democrats,^[9] the June List, the Feminist Initiative, and the Pirate Party.^{[citation needed]}

Polling

After the election in September 2006, the Alliance slipped well behind the opposition in the polls. A

The

Controversy about Sweden Democrats

The Sweden Democrats generated controversy before the election.^[9] Both the Alliance and the Red-Greens pledged not to seek support from the SD,^[7] with Reinfeldt ruling out forming a government in cooperation with the Sweden Democrats.^[5]

A

Several politicians in Denmark, initially from the Danish People's Party and later from the governing Venstre and the Conservative People's Party, reacted to TV4's refusal to air the video by calling for international election observers to be sent to Sweden.^[11][12] Pia Kjærsgaard, leader of the Danish People's Party, claimed that the election reminded her of "Eastern Europe", and that Sweden was the "banana republic" of the Nordic countries.^[11] Per-Willy Amundsen of the Norwegian Progress Party also criticised the decision as a "violation of democratic rules."^[13]

Violence

On 13 September in

After these cancelled election rallies, the National Police Commissioner Bengt Svenson severely criticized the county police for failing to safeguard the Sweden Democrats: "If it is not possible to protect them [in those locales], the police have failed in its planning and execution of its mission. [ . . . ] It is a serious problem when such meetings cannot be held, because it is our absolute duty to ensure that the constitutionally guaranteed rights be maintained and that all meetings can be held".^[17]

Consequences

These attempts to limit the SD message were described by Al Jazeera as counterproductive, in that they enabled the SD to portray itself as a victim of censorship.^[9]

Similarly, Hanne Kjöller of Dagens Nyheter hypothesised that the attacks strengthened the Sweden Democrats rather than hurting the party's support base. "Jimmie Åkesson becomes a poor underdog and the picture of a party that is holding some dangerous but important truth is enhanced. The Sweden Democrats should send flowers to the left-wing extremists, thanking them for the publicity."^[18]

Results

There were 5,960,408 valid ballots cast for a turnout of 84.63%.^[20]

Party		Votes	%	Seats	+/–
	Swedish Social Democratic Party	1,827,497	30.66	112	–18
	Moderate Party	1,791,766	30.06	107	+10
	Green Party	437,435	7.34	25	+6
	Liberal People's Party	420,524	7.06	24	–4
	Centre Party	390,804	6.56	23	–6
	Sweden Democrats	339,610	5.70	20	+20
	Left Party	334,053	5.60	19	–3
	Christian Democrats	333,696	5.60	19	–5
	Pirate Party	38,491	0.65	0	0
	Feminist Initiative	24,139	0.40	0	0
	Swedish Senior Citizen Interest Party	11,078	0.19	0	0
	Rural Democrats	1,565	0.03	0	New
	Socialist Justice Party	1,507	0.03	0	0
	Norrländska Coalition	1,456	0.02	0	New
	National Democrats	1,141	0.02	0	0
	Classical Liberal Party	716	0.01	0	0
	Freedom Party	688	0.01	0	New
	Party of the Swedes	681	0.01	0	0
	Unity	632	0.01	0	0
	Communist Party	375	0.01	0	0
	Spirits Party	237	0.00	0	New
	European Workers Party	187	0.00	0	0
	Health Care Party	185	0.00	0	0
	Alliance Party	87	0.00	0	0
	Direct Democrats	76	0.00	0	0
	National Democratic Party	63	0.00	0	0
	Population Party	35	0.00	0	New
	Communist League	26	0.00	0	0
	Freedom and Justice Party	19	0.00	0	0
	Scania Party	17	0.00	0	0
	Republicans	14	0.00	0	0
	Republican Party	10	0.00	0	New
	Nordic Union	5	0.00	0	0
	Alexander's Lista	4	0.00	0	New
	Li Yu Chen Andersson Party	4	0.00	0	New
	Rikshushållarna	3	0.00	0	0
	Labour Market Party UPI	2	0.00	0	New
	Parties not on the ballot	1,580	0.03	0	–
Total		5,960,408	100.00	349	0
Valid votes		5,960,408	98.87
Invalid/blank votes		68,274	1.13
Total votes		6,028,682	100.00
Registered voters/turnout		7,123,651	84.63
Source: Val

Seat distribution

Reactions

As exit polls conducted by the national broadcaster

On 23 September, the final results showed the Centre Party gaining an adjustment seat in Dalarna, giving the Alliance a total seat count of 173, still two seats short of an absolute majority.^[1] The Alliance's Liberal People's Party were only 7 and 19 votes short from gaining additional seats in Gothenburg and Värmland respectively,^[25] but according to Svante Linusson, a professor in mathematics, the actual margin was still over 800 votes.^[26][27]

On the day after the election, rallies against the Sweden Democrats took place in a number of Swedish cities. Reports indicated that 10,000 people were estimated to have marched in Stockholm under banners reading "We are ashamed", "No racists in Parliament",^[28] and "Refugees – welcome!". In Gothenburg, 5,000 people took part in a "sorrow march against racism", and 2,000 people marched in Malmö. Support for the Sweden Democrats was strongest in the southernmost province Scania, where the party received about 10% percent of the vote, and in the neighbouring province Blekinge, where they received 9.8 percent; the foreign media quoted "some people" from further north of the country as calling for Scania to be handed back to Denmark, where the Danish People's Party were seen as an inspiration for the SD.^{[citation needed]}

Liberal evening tabloid Expressen wrote in an editorial "The banner of tolerance has been hauled down and the forces of darkness have finally also taken the Swedish democracy as hostage. It's a day of sorrow." Liberal conservative morning newspaper Svenska Dagbladet said "[It is] time for the Swedes to get themselves a new national self-image [as the election] created a new picture of Sweden".^[29]

Analysis

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v t e

"While it's hard to say that Sweden has woken up to a new self-image, one can say that this is more like a normal European situation and is similar to other western European countries with a proportional election system, where a populist right-wing party has seats in parliament. It's the party that is the least liked among other voters, so it is not surprising that people have reacted with dismay". Carl Dahlstroem, professor of politics at

Gothenburg University.^[29]

The election was a landmark for its impact on the Social Democrats, which had been in government for 65 of the last 78 years and who had never lost two consecutive elections. This was their worst result since universal suffrage in 1921. Swedish political scientist Stig-Björn Ljunggren said "The Social Democrats no longer symbolise the Swedish model. They've lost their magic." The Dagens Nyheter postulated that electoral failure was based on internal factors, such that the Social Democrats failed to win over the middle class and had completely lost touch with their original vision, which had made them a dominant political party.^[30]

The Irish Times saw the rise of the SD as sending "ripples of shock not only through the country but through European politics," and asked "Is this finally it for the 'Swedish model'" that has been represented as a "meld of liberal values, high taxes, outstanding childcare and welfare that made the country the poster boy for European social democracy?" The Social Democrats' failure reflected the party's inability to adapt, an increasingly technocratic profile, a failure to address immigration concerns, as well as Reinfeldt's success in managing the economy. The results draws parallels with a larger decline of European left parties.^[31] An article in Al Jazeera English asked if Western political dynamics were changing following the Swedish and United States elections. The article said that predictions after the election indicated "an entirely new political landscape" and "the beginning of an era of sharper political division in Sweden." It asked if the similar results "reflect rather an underlying continuity in the generation-long evolution of Euro-American politics towards a fully neoliberalised system" and that Sweden seemed to be "moving towards an outdated model." It also said that, while social policies were similarly moving to the right, economic policies were poles apart, with the emergence of far-right parties in Sweden and Denmark still supporting the welfare state and the American parties remaining on the economic right-wing.^[32]

The case of Annika Holmqvist, a seriously ill 55-year-old woman who had her sickness benefits withdrawn and was requested to seek work, allegedly due to the Alliance's reforms of Sweden's social security system, gave the opposition a late boost in its campaign.

The Moderate Party was still seen as one of the big winners of the election because of its "well-executed campaign" that emphasised Sweden's "remarkable political and economic stability in a turbulent world" after Sweden weathered the

recession; despite mass unemployment, the economic growth in 2010 was the highest in Western Europe.^[5]

Government formation

See also:

Cabinet of Fredrik Reinfeldt

The Alliance formed the new government with Reinfeldt continuing as prime minister. His cabinet has 24

Minister for Communications. Tobias Krantz, former Minister of Higher Education at the Ministry of Education and Research, is leaving with no successor having been named.^[36]

Reinfeldt issued a 30-page statement of the new government's policies, saying it would "seek a broad-based and responsible solutions (sic)", and that it would "be natural...to hold regular discussions with the Green Party, in the first instance and also the Social Democratic Party where appropriate."[37]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d} "Val till riksdagen - Röster" (in Swedish). Swedish Election Authority. 23 September 2010. Retrieved 14 November 2010.
2. Valmyndigheten. 23 September 2010. Archived from the original
   on 4 September 2019. Retrieved 18 November 2019.
3. ^ "Reinfeldt unveils reshuffled cabinet". The Local. 5 October 2010. Retrieved 5 October 2010.
4. ^ "Sweden braces for rollercoaster election". The Local. 19 September 2010. Retrieved 19 September 2010.
5. ^ ^{a b c} "Economy trumps welfare worries in tight Swedish election - The Local". Thelocal.se. 22 September 2010. Retrieved 26 September 2010.
6. ^ My Rohwedder Street and Anders Silvergren Blåder (31 May 2010) "SD:s budget: Minskad invandring ska spara miljarder" Archived 4 October 2010 at the Wayback Machine Sveriges Television
7. ^ ^{a b c} Wikstrom, Cajsa (20 September 2010). "Swedish ruling bloc retains power". Al Jazeera English. Retrieved 20 September 2010.
8. ^ Jimmie Åkesson (19 October 2009) "'Muslimerna är vårt största utländska hot'" Aftonbladet Debatt
9. ^ ^{a b c d} Wikstrom, Cajsa (19 September 2010). "Far-right tests Swedish tolerance". Al Jazeera English. Retrieved 20 September 2010.
10. ^ SDReklam2010 (26 August 2010), Sverigedemokraternas valfilm 2010, archived from the original on 18 December 2021, retrieved 22 October 2017
11. ^ ^{a b} Halle, Jon Robin (3 September 2010). "Skandinavisk "krig" før valget". Aftenposten (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on 6 September 2010. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
12. ^ Danish Politicians Call for Election Observers in Sweden Der Spiegel 1 September 2010
13. ^ "Frp: - Svensk brudd på demokratiske spilleregler". Verdens Gang (NTB) (in Norwegian). 31 August 2010. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
14. ^ ^{a b} "Demonstrators stopped the SD meeting". Profile. 13 September 2010. Archived from the original on 16 September 2010. Retrieved 16 September 2010.
15. ^ Brandel, Tobias (15 September 2010). "SD kan inte hålla möten". Svenska Dagbladet. Retrieved 16 September 2010.
16. ^ Engstrom, Henry (15 September 2010). "threatened SD meeting was canceled". Folkbladet. Archived from the original on 20 October 2017. Retrieved 16 September 2010.
17. ^ "National Police Commissioner criticizes police Värmland". Sveriges Television. 16 September 2010. Archived from the original on 18 September 2010. Retrieved 16 September 2010.
18. ^ "Sverigedemokraterna: Blommogram till extremvänstern" Dagens Nyheter 18 September 2010
19. ^ "Val till riksdagen-Röster- Sjöbo". Val.se. 22 September 2010. Retrieved 5 October 2010.
20. Valmyndigheten. 23 September 2010. Archived from the original
    on 4 September 2019. Retrieved 20 November 2019.
21. ^ "Val till riksdagen - Valnatt" (in Swedish). val.se. 20 September 2010. Archived from the original on 16 September 2010. Retrieved 21 September 2010.
22. ^ McGuinness, Damien (20 September 2010). "Sweden narrowly re-elects centre-right alliance". BBC Online. Retrieved 20 September 2010.
23. ^ Lannin, Patrick (20 September 2010). "Swedish centre-right wins ballot but loses majority". Reuters. Retrieved 20 September 2010.
24. ^ Stiernstedt, Jenny (20 September 2010). "Alliansen segrar – SD blir vågmästare". Dagens Nyheter (in Swedish). Retrieved 20 September 2010.
25. ^ "Alliansens majoritetsdröm upp i rök" (in Swedish). DN.se. 23 September 2010. Retrieved 22 September 2010.
26. ^ "Rösterna är färdigräknade" (in Swedish). SvD.se. 23 September 2010. Retrieved 23 September 2010.
27. ^ Superrysare, Aftonbladet
28. ^ "Mass demonstration: We are ashamed" Archived 8 October 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Sveriges Radio.
29. ^ ^{a b} Magnusson, Niklas (21 September 2010). "Swedes Protest on Streets as Anti-Immigrants Enter Parliament". Bloomberg. Retrieved 26 September 2010.
30. ^ "'Swedish model' party in crisis". Swedishwire.com. Archived from the original on 24 September 2010. Retrieved 26 September 2010.
31. ^ "Sweden's right - The Irish Times - Wed, Sep 22, 2010". The Irish Times. 22 September 2010. Retrieved 26 September 2010.
32. ^ LeVine, Mark. "Nowhere left to run". english.aljazeera.net. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
33. ^ Reinfeldt rocked by 'chlamydia letter', The Local, 19 September 2010
34. ^ 'Chlamydia letter' blogger deprived of benefits, The Local, 21 September 2010.
35. ^ John Aravosis. "How a young woman's blog post is changing the Swedish elections". americablog.com. Archived from the original on 19 September 2010. Retrieved 8 April 2018.
36. ^ "Reinfeldts nya regering" (in Swedish). DN.se. 5 October 2010. Archived from the original on 7 October 2010. Retrieved 5 October 2010.
37. ^ "Swedish PM Announces his New Cabinet, Policies". english.cri.cn. Archived from the original on 20 October 2017. Retrieved 8 April 2018.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Swedish general election, 2010.

• Val 2010 from the main website, English version
• NSD: European Election Database - Sweden Archived 11 August 2010 at the Wayback Machine publishes regional level election data; allows for comparisons of election results, 1992–2010