STOCKHOLM: Sweden's parliament on Thursday rejected Social Democrats leader Magdalena Andersson's bid to form a minority government, as widely expected, extending a period of uncertainty over who will become prime minister after last month's general election. Only the Social Democrats voted in favour of Andersson, while the other parties voted against. Thursday's ballot was the first of up to four votes before a new election must be called.
Four centre-left opposition parties, which have all said they favour Andersson as prime minister, won 176 seats on September 13 to 173 for Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson's right-wing bloc, but do not agree on who should be part of a new government. "It's been clear to me since the election night that it will take some time and that several ballots would likely be necessary to appoint a prime minister," Andersson said after the vote.
The parliament speaker is widely expected to ask Kristersson of the Moderates, the second-biggest party after the Social Democrats, to try to form a government next, although there is little indication so far that he could secure a majority. — Reuters
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