Kristersson Ulf (Ulf Kristersson)

Kristersson Ulf (Ulf Kristersson)

Biography

2022: Took over as Prime Minister of Sweden

On Oct. 17, 2022, parliament Sweden elected Conservative leader Ulf Kristersson as prime minister at the head of a center-right coalition that promised to fight crime and cut immigration in partnership with a populist party with far-right roots.

Parliamentary elections were held in Sweden on September 11, 2022. According to the results of the vote, the right-wing bloc, which includes the Moderate Coalition Party, with a minimum advantage - 49.5% of the vote against 48.8% - defeated the coalition of the ruling parties. 176 deputies voted for Kristersson's candidacy, 173 against. As a result, it was possible to create a ruling coalition, which also included the Swedish Democrats - this party is called right-wing radical and nationalist. The coalition does not have a formal parliamentary majority, but Swedish laws allow the government to function in this case.

In early October 2022, Kristersson introduced an agreement that would see his conservative Moderate Party form a government along with the smaller Christian Democrats and Liberals, while closely coordinating government policy with the Sweden Democrats, who won 20% of the vote to become Sweden's second largest party. They agreed on a common platform that includes making it harder for asylum seekers to stay in Sweden and making it easier to deport foreign nationals linked to criminal gangs. Banditry has become a major problem in Sweden, especially in immigrant-dominated areas, and is considered one of the main reasons for the country's shift to the right. In addition to immigration and criminal justice, the future coalition has agreed to work with the Sweden Democrats in other areas such as power, including efforts to expand nuclear power.

The current Prime Minister of Sweden Magdalena Andersson admitted defeat in the elections and intends to resign. She stated this at a press conference, reports Reuters. The change of government is not expected to affect Sweden's historic bid to join NATO, along with neighboring Finland, which was approved by a clear majority in parliament after the launch of Russia's military special operation in Ukraine on February 24, 2022.^[1]

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