Sweden's Andersson fails again to form government

Social Democratic leader Magdalena Andersson said on Tuesday she cannot form a government parliament would tolerate, and she now faces a prime ministerial vote on Thursday that the speaker expects her to lose.

Why it matters: A month after the September 13 election Sweden still has no route to a government, the left bloc's Center and Left parties remain mutually incompatible, and the task of forming one is likely to pass to caretaker prime minister Ulf Kristersson.

Data as of Tuesday, October 13, 2026. Single wire report (AFP via Arab News), opened and read in full, hence grade C. Developing item, 2 to 3 sentences by design.

Magdalena Andersson reported back to Speaker Andreas Norlen on Tuesday and said the conditions are not in place to form a government, her second failed attempt since the September 13 election, in which her left bloc won 176 seats to 173 for the outgoing right bloc. The blockage is unchanged: the Center Party will not accept a government with Left Party ministers, and the Left Party will only back a government it sits in. Norlen said parliament will still vote on Andersson as prime minister on Thursday, a vote he concedes she will likely fail, after which he is expected to turn to caretaker prime minister Ulf Kristersson; the speaker has four attempts before a snap election is required.

Sweden's Andersson fails again to form government

Sources