Government formation in Sweden: Centre Party leader Thand Ringqvist to explore centrist government
Riksdag Speaker Andreas Norlén has tasked Centre Party leader Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist with the next round of exploratory talks. By 26 October she is to assess whether a government of the political centre is possible.
More than five weeks after the Riksdag election, Sweden still has no new government. On Monday, 19 October, Riksdag Speaker Andreas Norlén gave the leader of the Centre Party (Centerpartiet), Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist, the next exploratory mandate. She is to assess whether a government of the political centre could command a majority in the Riksdag and report back to the Speaker no later than Monday, 26 October.
What the mandate means
Norlén stressed that he had not tasked Thand Ringqvist with forming a government, but with leading the talks. According to TV4, he justified his choice by saying that her name had been put forward by both the left and the right after the failed vote the previous week. According to The Local, Norlén acknowledged that she was “perhaps not an obvious candidate” for the post of prime minister. But it was reasonable, he said, to give her the opportunity to examine the centrist option. He intends to decide on the next step after her report.
The Centre Party’s position
Thand Ringqvist said she is not seeking the post of prime minister herself. Her goal, she said, is a government capable of acting that creates jobs, cuts emissions and strengthens the welfare state. She intends to invite all party leaders to talks, but describes the starting position as very difficult. The deadlocks in Swedish politics exist on both the left and the right, she said. Her party is campaigning for a government made up of the Social Democrats, the Centre Party, the Greens, the Christian Democrats and the Liberals. The Centre Party firmly rules out cooperating with a government that includes the Sweden Democrats.
Sweden Democrats offer talks
Even before Norlén’s decision, Sweden Democrat leader Jimmie Åkesson had invited Thand Ringqvist, in an open letter on the platform X, to a no-strings-attached conversation about the parliamentary situation. According to The Local, however, his party is sticking to its demand for ministerial posts. Justice Minister Gunnar Strömmer of the Moderates said on Swedish television that the invitation does not change the basic situation. Whether the deadlocks can be resolved, he said, depends above all on the parties themselves.
Background: Andersson’s defeat in the Riksdag
On 15 October, the Riksdag rejected Social Democrat Magdalena Andersson as prime minister. She had herself previously acknowledged that there was not sufficient support for a government the Riksdag would tolerate (more on this here). Until a new government takes office, the outgoing government under Ulf Kristersson continues in a caretaker role. Under Swedish law, the Speaker can put up to four candidates to a vote. If all of them fail, a new election must be held. How government formation works in principle is explained in our article on Sweden’s political system.