Hejsan! Welcome to In Sweden with Steve, a new series where I will occasionally talk about Sweden rather than Swedish. But don’t worry, you language-lovers out there will be introduced to some important practical vocabulary in these videos as well.

So, the reason for the spontaneity of this series is the approach of a very important event in Swedish history: the general elections of 2014. Mycket står på spel – that is, much is at stake. And there are only 10 days left.

Before we begin, I would like to present the 8 political parties currently represented in Riksdagen – the Swedish parliament. In order of size in the current government:

–    Socialdemokraterna: The Social Democrats (link)
–    Moderaterna: The Moderate Party (link)
–    Miljöpartiet: The Green Party (link)
–    Folkpartiet: The People’s Party (link)
–    Centerpartiet: The Center Party (link)
–    Sverigedemokraterna: The Sweden Democrats (link)
–    Vänsterpartiet: The Left Party (link)
–    Kristdemokraterna: The Christian Democrats (link)

That’s a lot of parties when compared to in the United States where there are basically only two major parties. Aside from these 8 Swedish parties, though, there are two others that are fighting to enter the parliament:

–    Piratpartiet: The Pirate Party (link)
–    Feministiskt initiativ: Feminist Initiative (link)

Support for the Pirate Party has fluctuated over the years, while support for Feminist Initiative, a party whose goal is to combat discrimination on all grounds, has increased by over 1200% over the past year. There is a strong possibility that the party may enter Riksdagen this year.

To get into the Swedish parliament, a party must have at least 4% of the popular vote. In August, surveys showed that Feminist Initiative had around 3,4%. As you can imagine, the party is campaigning like crazy.

In Sweden, most of the parties cooperate in one of two blocks. There’s the left block, otherwise known as De rödgröna or “the Red-Greens”, and the right block, alliansen or “the Alliance”. The parties in the left block are, in order of size:

–    Socialdemokraterna: The Social Democrats
–    Miljöpartiet: The Green Party
–    Vänsterpartiet: The Left Party

The parties cooperating in the right block are:

–    Moderaterna: The Moderate Party
–    Folkpartiet: The People’s Party
–    Centerpartiet: The Center Party
–    Kristdemokraterna: The Christian Democrats

The eighth party, the one that does not exclusively collaborate with either of the two blocks, is Sverigedemokraterna, the Sweden Democrats, a nationalist conservative party comprising 5,7% of the current parliament. They are the direct rivals of Feminist Initiative. Because neither of the blocks gained a majority in the previous election, the Sweden Democrats have been functioning as vågmästare, the deal breakers with the final say in decisions if the two blocks disagree with each other. In most cases, they have tended to lean toward the right.

Recent surveys have implied that neither block will comprise a majority after this election either, which implies that the Sweden Democrats will remain the “deal breakers”. However, since the election in 2010, support for the left block has risen to just under 50%, while support for the right block has sunk to under 40%. If Feminist Initiative, a left-wing party, enters the Riksdag, they will undoubtedly work with the left block and effectively form a left-wing majority, removing the Sweden Democrats from their advantageous position as “deal breakers”.

Ten days from today, Swedish citizens will go to their local vallokal (polling station) and cast their votes. In the 2010 riksdagsval, or parliamentary election, 85% of Sweden’s 7 million eligible voters voted. This year, we hope to see even more people voting. We’re all looking forward to seeing the results of this exciting and decisive election!

What do you think will happen? Will the left block end up with a majority thanks to Feminist Initiative, or will the Sweden Democrats remain the deal breakers siding with the right block? Let us know what you think in the comments!

UPDATE 4/9 kl 12.00: There is news regarding support for Feministiskt initiativ. Comment first, then check it out!

Sources: Sverige Riksdag, Valmyndigheten, DN(1), DN(2), Facebook