Status: 01.07.2021 6:07 p.m.
The old Prime Minister of Sweden could also become the new one: The Social Democrat Löfven is supposed to conduct explorations with other parties and bring about a government. The middle-class Kristersson had previously failed because of this.
Sweden’s Prime Minister Stefan Löfven gets a new chance to form a government after the vote of no confidence in him. The President of the Reichstag, Andreas Norlén, instructed the head of the Social Democrats to conduct exploratory talks with other parties.
Löfven has until Monday to inform Norlén of his plans. “If he tells me that he has a solution, I’ll be ready to nominate him as prime minister that same afternoon,” said the speaker. “My message remains that the Social Democrats and I are ready to take on the responsibility to lead the country forward together with other constructive forces,” said Löfven on the online networks.
The Swedish system requires that a prime minister be tolerated by parliament: he can secure the office as long as a majority does not vote against him. It is expected that Löfven will continue the alliance with the Greens and be re-elected Prime Minister with the votes of the Center Party and the Left.
Kristersson gave up before the deadline
Previously, the head of the moderates, Ulf Kristersson, had been tasked with exploring the formation of a new government. But before the deadline had expired, he gave up today. There are simply not the parliamentary requirements for the formation of a bourgeois government, he said.
Given the composition of Parliament, it was expected that Kristersson would have difficulty finding sufficient support. Above all, his decision to work with the right-wing populist Sweden Democrats was considered a sticking point.
Left party withdrew toleration
Löfven has ruled together with the Greens since 2018. The coalition was dependent on the support of the left, the liberals and the center party. Last week, Löfven became the first Prime Minister of Sweden to lose his post in a vote of no confidence after the Left Party withdrew its tolerance of his minority coalition in the dispute over a planned relaxation of rent controls.
The 63-year-old resigned on Monday to avoid a new election and pave the way for a new government to be formed. Löfven continues the official business until a new government is sworn in. The Swedes will normally elect a new parliament in September 2022. If the process of finding a successor that is now under way fails, the country could still hold new elections early.