Swedish PM resigns after parliamentary elections defeat

STOCKHOLM, Sept. 17 (Xinhua) -- Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson announced his resignation on Thursday after preliminary results showed his right-wing bloc lost its parliamentary majority in the general election.

Sweden's Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, leader of the conservative Moderates, speaks with journalists in front of a polling station in Strangnas near Stockholm, during Sweden's general election on September 13, 2026. (File photo: AFP)

"The Speaker will now lead the next steps toward forming a new government. To allow that process to begin immediately, I hereby request to be relieved of my duties as prime minister," Kristersson said in a statement posted on X.

Preliminary results released earlier Thursday by the Swedish Election Authority showed that the center-left opposition bloc had secured a parliamentary majority, with all 6,626 electoral districts counted.

Together, the four opposition parties received 49.6 percent of the vote and secured 176 seats in the 349-seat parliament. Kristersson's right-wing bloc received 48.8 percent of the vote and won 173 seats.

The focus now shifts to whether the four opposition parties can agree on a governing arrangement. The grouping brings together the Social Democrats, the Left Party, the Green Party and the Centre Party. The Social Democrats remained the largest party, receiving 28 percent of the vote and securing 99 seats.

Reaching such an arrangement could prove difficult given the parties' significant policy differences. Swedish Television domestic political commentator Mats Knutson cited taxation, sick-pay deductions and nuclear power as key areas of disagreement, while noting that compromises could be reached on other issues.