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Sweden’s Parliament Set To Elect First Female Prime Minister

Sweden’s Parliament Set To Elect First Female Prime Minister

Sweden’s parliament is on the way to elect Finance Minister; Magdalena Andersson as the country’s first female prime minister on Wednesday, hours after she clinched a last-minute deal securing key support.

Her election in the position comes five months after SAP Prime Minister Stefan Lofven resigned after losing a vote of confidence in parliament.

The 54-year-old economist who took over as leader of the Social Democrats earlier this month, reached a deal with the Left Party late on Tuesday to raise pensions in exchange for its backing in Wednesday’s vote in parliament.

“We have reached an agreement to strengthen the finances of the poorest pensioners,” Andersson told public broadcaster SVT minutes after the deal was announced.

“We’re not going to block Andersson,” Left Party leader Nooshi Dadgostar told Swedish Radio.

According to Reuters, under Sweden’s system, a prime ministerial candidate does not need the support of a majority in parliament — rather, they just need to not have a majority against them. Andersson has already received the support of the Social Democrats’ coalition partner the Greens, as well as the Centre Party.

Sweden’s Parliament Set To Elect First Female Prime Minister Agnesisika blogHowever, political observers noted there was still a slight chance the Centre Party could thwart Andersson’s bid. It has previously warned that it could withdraw its support if she concedes too much ground to the Left Party.

Centre Party leader Annie Loof refused to comment late Monday on the Left’s deal with Andersson.
The vote will take place at 0800 GMT.

If elected, Andersson would formally take over her functions following a meeting with King Carl XVI Gustaf on Friday. She would replace Stefan Lofven, who resigned on November 10 after seven years as prime minister in a widely expected move aimed at giving his successor time to prepare for the country’s September 2022 general election.

The Social Democrats are currently hovering close to their lowest-ever approval ratings with elections less than a year away. The right-wing opposition, led by the conservative Moderates, has in recent years inched closer to the anti-immigration Sweden Democrats and hopes to govern with its informal backing.

Despite being a nation that has long championed gender equality, Sweden has never had a woman as prime minister. All other Nordic countries — Norway, Denmark, Finland, and Iceland — have seen women lead their governments.

After being confirmed as the Social Democrats’ leader, Andersson, a former junior swimming champion often described as “pragmatic” and a “technocratic bureaucrat”, outlined three political priorities going forward.

She said she wanted to “take back democratic control of schools, healthcare, and elderly care”, and move away from welfare sector privatization. She also said she aimed to make Sweden a worldwide role model in climate transition.

She also vowed to end the segregation, shootings, and bombings that have plagued the country in recent years, usually due to rival gangs settling scores or organized crime battling over the drug market. The violence has mainly hit disadvantaged neighborhoods with large immigrant populations but has increasingly spilled over into other areas.

she secures the country’s top job, she will then need to steer her party through the next general election, scheduled for September 2022, as support for the Social Democrats has been slipping.

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