The leader of the Sweden Democrats, Jimmie Åkesson, said on Tuesday that his party has no intention of giving up its demand for ministerial posts in any government it backs, according to Dagens Nyheter. His statement came as Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson of the Moderate Party met reporters at the Riksdag to discuss his exploratory mandate to form a government. Kristersson said he expected the task to be difficult, and probably very difficult.
Why it matters
Sweden's government formation now hinges on two parties that have each drawn a hard line. The Center Party says it will not help put in place a government that cooperates with the Sweden Democrats. The Sweden Democrats say they will only support a government if they hold seats in it. If neither side moves, Kristersson cannot assemble the non-socialist majority he promised to attempt if the red-green parties failed to form a government.
Åkesson holds firm on cabinet posts
There had been media reports that the Sweden Democrats were considering dropping their demand for ministerial positions. Åkesson rejected that when he took questions from journalists. He said that if his party is to support a government, it should also sit in that government, referring to the four years just passed. He added that he found it very hard to imagine anything that could outweigh the need for the Sweden Democrats to be part of a government.
Center Party repeats its red line
Center Party leader Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist restated her party's position to TT on Tuesday, saying the Center Party cannot allow a government that works with the Sweden Democrats. That message was echoed in coverage from Aftonbladet, which reported that the Center Party's red line against the Sweden Democrats stands. Göteborgs-Posten reported that neither the Center Party nor the Sweden Democrats wants to see a new Alliance government.
A possible path, but not from the party leadership
One voice offering a way out was Douglas Thor, a leading figure in the Moderate Party's youth wing, the Muf. He told Dagens Nyheter he believes there is a solution in which both the Center Party and the Sweden Democrats could justify backing a centre-right government. His proposal combines a clear right-of-centre policy on forestry and the economy with a compromise on migration: more people who abide by the rules would be allowed to stay, while more who do not would be deported.
Thor argued that under such an arrangement the Center Party could get the policies it prefers and still tell voters it had kept both the Left Party and the Sweden Democrats out of the government. The Center Party has so far not wanted any form of government cooperation with the Sweden Democrats, and Ringqvist's remarks on Tuesday did not depart from that.
What to watch
Kristersson now has a week to try to bring the Center Party into some form of cooperation with the Sweden Democrats despite its stated red lines. Whether either side shifts, or whether a compromise along the lines Thor described gains traction, will determine if a new government can be formed.
