Sweden election too close to call as Andersson's left bloc edges ahead in partial count

Partial results from Sweden's national election on Sunday showed conservative Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson's four-party alliance locked in a near dead heat with the left-wing opposition, including former prime minister Magdalena Andersson's Social Democrats.

Exit polls from public broadcaster SVT had initially put the left-wing parties several percentage points ahead, triggering jubilation at the Social Democrats' election gathering. The mood shifted to quiet waiting as actual vote counts came in and the two blocs drew almost level with about two-thirds of ballots tallied.

"Right now, we are leading. If this holds, Sweden will have a new government," Andersson told elated supporters. She cautioned, however, that the outcome remained uncertain. "But we have to wait for the final result. Let us see the democratic process through to the end."

Andersson said every vote cast must be counted and that the close race was reason to seek a new spirit of cooperation in Swedish politics, urging those entrusted with representing voters in parliament to put Sweden and its people first.

Kristersson has led Sweden since 2022 at the head of a three-party centre-right coalition that relied on outside support from the Sweden Democrats for a parliamentary majority. The anti-immigration party, which has far-right roots but has moved toward the political mainstream, had been promised Cabinet posts this time if the governing coalition were returned to office.

The Social Democrats have led most Swedish governments since World War II. Andersson served as prime minister from 2021 until she lost power at the last election, and a win for the four left parties would pave the way for her return to office.

Swedish politics is organised into two major blocs, each with four parties, so the central question is less which party finishes first and more which side can command a majority. Individual parties need at least 4% of the vote to win seats in the 349-seat Riksdag.

With broad political consensus in Sweden on major issues such as support for Ukraine and the country's decision to join NATO, much of the election discussion focused on the possibility of the hard right entering government. The Sweden Democrats' role drew particular attention amid gains for the populist right elsewhere in Europe, including the first-place finish by the far-right Alternative for Germany in a regional election there on Sept. 6.

The Sweden Democrats were founded in the 1980s by people who had been active in right-wing extremist groups, including neo-Nazis. Under Jimmie Åkesson, who has led the party since 2005, they toned down their rhetoric and expelled openly racist members, overseeing their growth from what was once a marginal force.

More than 8 million people in the country of about 10.6 million were eligible to vote in the election for the Riksdag.