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Sweden on Election Night – Days of Future Past
It’s election night in Sweden and, according to the latest polls, my country has chosen a future of sorrows past.
But before I get into all that, I should offer up some background for those of you not currently glued to the Swedish state-TV:
For the past eight years, Sweden has had a center-right government after almost uninterrupted Socialist rule. Four parties have governed together, forming the conservative coalition “The Alliance”: The Moderates (headed up by Prime minister Fredrik Reinfeldt), the Christian Democrats, the Liberal Party and the Center-Party. Much has happened In those eight years, and even though the conservative coalition came into power during the worst recession since the 30s, Sweden can now boast a GDP growth of 12.6%, a rise in disposable incomes of 20%, and the title of Europe’s most successful economy. This has happened after huge changes made to the public sector, cutting public spending from its previous level of 68% to about 50%, and making private options available in health care and education. Taxes have been cut in most areas and in some instances — such as inheritance- wealth- and property tax — they have been removed entirely. The most radical change has perhaps been the social security system, where bigger demands have been put on those out of work in order to receive their checks at the end of the month. After having been world leaders in disability pensioners and unemployed people being put in early retirement, the new conservative coalition changed the system to put those people back in the workforce, something that created outrage among a people used to generous benefits with little to no demands for performance.
Perhaps that is one of the reasons to why I am now watching my country choose to go back to Socialist rule. According to the latest polls, the Social Democrats will win this election, along with the environmental party and the leftist party (former communist party), and the former union boss Stefan Löfven will become Sweden’s new Prime Minister.
These three parties, calling themselves the Red-Green coalition, have run on a platform of no profits in education or health care, higher taxes, and added benefits. Basically, they want to overturn the harm that they perceive to have been done over the past eight years.
They will not be able to rule in the majority though. The biggest winner in this election will most certainly be The Swedish Democrats, the far-right party running on a platform of limited immigration. From 4,7% in the previous election, they will now reach double digits, thus giving them the balance of power in parliament. This should surprise no one, but seems to fill the entire political establishment with moral outrage. Sweden has set a record in immigration over the past 10 years, and the growing issues with Jihadi tourism, segregation, crime and a Muslim population nearing 10% have been the elephant in the room during this election cycle. The political establishment refuses to touch this issue, most likely out of fear of both losing a big chunk of voters and being labeled racist, a common occurrence in Swedish political debate. This silence has benefited the Swedish Democrat Party, and come Monday they will be the 3rd largest political party in Sweden.
One of the parties thought to enter parliament for the very first time is Fi, Feminist initiative, focusing mainly on issues pertaining to gender equality. They have strong opinions, but when it comes to fact-checking and foresight they seem to be coming up short; an independent researcher showed that if the Feminist Party gets all their ideas through, taxes would have to be raised by several hundred percent. However, their unorthodox ideas on military defense in times of great European uncertainty may be one of the ways they intend to save money. Feminist Initiative wants to scrap Swedish defense entirely because it says the military perpetuates violence and the idea that men are agents of aggression (which it says leads to more domestic violence). They also want “reeducation” for men that work within government media to make sure that they become aware of how they fit into the patriarchal system and how they can become more sensitive to the female plight.
Feminist Initiative, along with the leftist party, is the preferred party for the intellectual elite and they are both projected to have their must successful election ever. This may be indicative of the extremist trend we saw proof of in the elections to the European Parliament this May, where far left and far right claimed victory over the center-right establishment; but perhaps it also speaks to an ideology so engrained in the Swedish psyche that it always finds its way back to the ballot.
After casting my vote a few hours ago, I walked back home through a crispy city dressed for fall, and the anger I had previously felt turned into a somber sadness. Much like the Israelites, the people of Sweden stood at the Red Sea, fearful of freedom. But, unlike the Israelites, they are choosing to be slaves in Egypt rather than risk a treacherous trek. As Swedes we always have the option not to grow up, to be dependent from the cradle to the grave, as creativity is legislated out and everyone stays safely mediocre. We were shown an option, freedom was at our fingertips, but, according to the polls, freedom was an unwelcome visitor in this culture of consensus.
In four hours I will know what I already feel sure of: tomorrow I will wake up to a new country outside my window. Or no, that’s not quite true. It’s the country I grew up in, a country I prayed I would never see again.
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Nah, it doesn’t cure it, but if you drink enough you just won’t care anymore.
A cabaret on the highway
You know the time is ten ’til twoA pretty waitress at my tableA pretty waitress at my tableShe say “What can I do for you?”(that’s just what she said now)Oh, baby, I’m so lonelyand my mind is ill at easeI need a woman to love mebut if you cannot love me, thenJack Daniels, if you pleaseCHORUS:Whiskey and water-ooooooWhiskey and waterHere’s to fear and pain and sorrowJack Daniels, if you please(look out now!)Then I called on Miss Maggie GentryYou know, I fell way down upon my kneesNow, Maggie darlin’, I need some lovin’,Oh, deep deep down in my dark ol’ soulWon’t you set my mind at easeOh, baby, I believe I’m gonna love youSo lay your head down across my knees(thank you, darlin’)I’m gonna kiss you, and I’ll caress youMmm, but honey there’s just one little thing I’ll ask you for first(What’s that, darlin’?)Jack Daniels, if you please
I love that there’s no delete post feature in the edit tool. Thanks.
It was 18 years since I left Sweden but I do not think that would work. SD is considered fascist by the other center/right parties. And media would kill them.
BTW: “Liberal” in liberal party should be interpreted in the classical way (albeit in a Swedish somewhat watered-down version). And long time ago the Moderates used to be called Hogern which means “The Right”. They rebranded to be more aligned with the national temperament. And to answer Aaron’s question about republican. No. Sweden used to have a two-chamber parliament but the “first chamber” was abolished late 60-ies. Motivation was that it slowed down decision making and made it harder for the socialists to “reform” the country.
Annika,
Sounds like Mr. Delingpole must update his metaphor. A Watermelon is Green on the outside and Red on the inside. However, this Watermelon comes wrapped in a pink ribbon. Marxist-Environmentalist-Feminist extremism.
Well, Margaret Thatcher had the answer. It will work until they run out of other people’s money.
Regards,
Jim
Yes, that would seem unlikely. But if they did manage to get past that hurdle, they could still retain the government. As of now, it seems their combined percentages are up to 52.2%. So it still seems that, marginally, the Swedish electorate did vote for the “right” parties.
The silver lining seems to be that F! didn’t get into parliament, after all. They only got 3.1% of the vote.
Also, given that they had a voter turnout of over 87%, that’s pretty amazing.
Imagine if 87% of the electorate voted in US elections. The GOP would be forever relegated to a tiny minority, as I suspect the majority of those that don’t vote, are completely clueless, which makes them natural Democratic Party constituents.
Which is why I’ve always advocated that the best policy is one which limits voter turnout, and voting rights in general, as much as possible.
So..the final results are in: 158 mandates for the Red-Green-coalition and 142 for the Conservative coalition. It’s important to note that both groups refuse to govern with the far-right party, making this a victory for the socialist branch and the Swedish Democrats that ended up with 49 mandates in Parliament.
Thanks!
How “right” is the “far right” SD? Nothing I’ve seen would contraindicate leftist nationalism.
Wkipedia has nothing about their economic policies.
The accusations of anti-Semitism appear a bit cryptic.
Are the Swedish Democrats actually extreme? Is there anything remarkable about them other than their desire to restrict immigration from Muslim countries? Or does the “fascists” claim just reflect the common equating of fascism with racism, even though the fascist regimes of the 1930s were generally left-wing.
Annika – I wondered what you thought of this piece posted at the National Review site, by Henry Olsen (and thanks for the updates):
http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/387982/why-swedens-election-matters-american-conservatives-henry-olsen
Heartbreaking.
But let’s back up a step, if you don’t mind: how does one become a conservative (“liberal,” in European parlance) Jewish Swede in the first place?
Re: #43, Annika, I join in GG’s query/request: Would you be comfortable in sharing the earlier phases of your becoming who you are and believing as you do with us? We would be honored and edified by this, it seems to me…Thanks in advance!
Some of the answer to #43 and #44 may be found in this piece:
http://ricochet.com/a-love-letter-from-a-swedish-conservative/
And I have actually already thought of doing another piece on the topic, and I am honored and happy that y’ all would ask!
Oh no, Annika. Are you predicting that Katie Couric may soon be seeking national political office?