But the result was so close that the election authority said it would not be known until Wednesday when some uncounted votes, including those cast abroad, would be counted. According to the early count, Anderson’s ruling left-wing Social Democrats won 30.5% of the vote, more than any other party. However, a bloc of four left-wing parties appeared to fall short of an overall majority of votes in the 349-seat parliament, or Riksdag. Exit polls had initially predicted a narrow victory for Andersson’s camp, but as the evening wore on and vote counting replaced the exit polls, the results were trending in favor of the conservatives. Early Monday, the conservatives appeared to have 176 seats to 173 for the center-left. In a speech to her supporters, Andersson said that while the results were inconclusive, it was clear that the social democratic movement, which is based on the ideals of creating an equal society and a strong welfare state, remains strong in Sweden. The biggest winner of the night was the populist anti-immigration party, the Sweden Democrats, which had a strong performance of almost 21%, its best ever result. The party won on promises to crack down on shootings and other gangs that have shaken the sense of security for many in Sweden. The party has its roots in the white nationalist movement, but years ago began rooting out extremists. Despite its renaming, voters have long found it objectionable and other parties have shunned it. But that has changed, and his result in this election shows how far he has come in acceptance. “We are now the second largest party in Sweden and it looks like it will stay that way,” party leader Jimmy Akesson told supporters. “We know now that if there is going to be a change in power, we will have a central role in it,” he said. “Our ambition is to be in the government.” The conservative bloc was led during the campaign by the centre-right Moderates, who won 19%. It was previously the second largest party in the country. Moderate leader Ulf Kristerson told supporters he was ready to try to form a stable and effective government. Regardless of the election result, Sweden is likely to face a long process of forming a government, as happened after the 2018 election. Andersson, a 55-year-old economist, became Sweden’s first female prime minister less than a year ago and led Sweden’s historic bid to join NATO after Russia invaded Ukraine in February.
Jari Tanner in Helsinki, Finland and James Brooks in Stockholm contributed to the report.
This version corrects the percentage won by the Sweden Democrats in 2018. It was 17.5% of the vote. They gained 13% in 2014.
