Politics News

Kristersson resigns as Sweden's left bloc wins 176 of 349 seats and the far right slips

Sweden's four opposition parties won a narrow majority in the September 13 election, and Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson announced his resignation on Thursday, September 17. The Illawarra Mercury, carrying AP, said the left-leaning bloc won 176 seats in the 349-seat Riksdag against 173 for the parties in or backing the outgoing government. Kristersson posted his resignation letter on X, asking to be relieved of office “to allow that work to start immediately.”

Kuwait Times, carrying AFP on election night, reported the Social Democrats at about 28%, which would be their worst result in over a century but still first place, the Moderates at 19.9% and the Sweden Democrats at 17.6%, down from 20.6% in 2022 and their first drop since entering parliament in 2010.

“For now, we are in the lead. And if that is confirmed, Sweden will have a new government.” — Magdalena Andersson, via Kuwait Times

How each outlet framed it

• Kuwait Times (AFP) — the far right losing ground, with Sweden Democrats leader Jimmie Åkesson conceding “we've lost a few percentage points.”
• Illawarra Mercury (AP) — what comes next: Andersson closer to regaining the job she lost in 2022, but tensions inside her bloc could complicate a government.
• Radio X — the UK view on election night, when preliminary results showed a one-seat edge.

Where the numbers differ: Preliminary results on election night gave the left bloc a one-seat advantage; AFP later reported a three-seat majority with over 90% counted, matching the 176–173 split.