World
Magdalena Andersson Leads the Polls in Sweden After Hardening Her Migration Rhetoric
The Swedish campaign was shaped by immigration and security, with the Sweden Democrats at the center of the dispute. According to ABC España, the Social Democratic leader is seeking to maintain her lead with a tougher line and no deals with the far right.
Immigration and security dominated the election campaign in Sweden, in a scenario in which Social Democrat Magdalena Andersson appears to be leading the polls after defending an “strict and restrictive” migration policy, according to ABC España.
According to that outlet, the Sweden Democrats promoted during the campaign bus ads in the west of the country with messages about the return of foreigners and references to state aid for voluntary departure. ABC España noted that more than 20 Somali bus drivers resigned after that action.
Meanwhile, Andersson defended the migration shift of her camp after the refugee crisis and said at different events that immigration generated problems of integration and crime. According to ABC España, she also guaranteed that with her party immigration will not increase.
The polls cited by that newspaper place Socialdemokraterna near 30%, with SD in second place at 19% and the Moderates of Ulf Kristersson in third at 18%. Further behind are Vänsterpartiet, Centerpartiet, Miljöpartiet and Kristdemokraterna, all around 7%.
ABC España indicated that, if those projections were confirmed, Centerpartiet could end up holding the key to the future parliamentary majority. The absolute majority stands at 175 seats, and the sum of Social Democrats, Vänsterpartiet and Miljöpartiet would not reach that number on its own.
The Spanish newspaper also stressed that Andersson is willing to cooperate with all parties except SD, with a program based on security, prosperity and cohesion. At the same time, it described how the political normalization of SD during the current legislature expanded its influence over the public agenda and opened the possibility that the party could seek to formally enter government.
In a profile of the leader, ABC España also recalled that Andersson was Finance Minister for seven years, became the first woman to head the Swedish government in 2021 and played a key role in pushing Sweden’s accession to NATO in 2024.
Sources
Sobre esta nota. Written by El Notero with the assistance of artificial intelligence, based on what was published by the cited outlet. El Notero did not conduct its own reporting on this event.
