The formation of a new government autumn 2021

It is the Riksdag that decides who will become prime minister.

The Speaker presents a proposal for a new prime minister to the Riksdag and states at the same time which parties will be included in the prospective government. The Riksdag then takes a decision by voting on the proposal. If more than half of the members of the Riksdag, that is at least 175 members, vote against the proposal, it is rejected. Otherwise it is approved.

When a government resigns, it is the Speaker who dismisses the government, that is, who gives his or her consent to the resignation of the prime minister and the other ministers. It is then the task of the Speaker to prepare a proposal for a new prime minister.

Before the Speaker presents such a proposal, he or she must consult representatives from the party groups in the Riksdag, usually the party leaders, and confer with the Deputy Speakers. The Speaker has discussions with the party representatives in turn, talks that are often referred to as the "Speaker's interview rounds". The purpose is to find the candidate with the greatest likelihood of obtaining sufficient support in the Riksdag to form a government.

The Speaker presents a proposal for a new prime minister in the Chamber of the Riksdag and states at the same time which parties should be included in the government. The proposal is then examined by the members of the Riksdag no later than four days after the proposal was presented by means of a vote in the Chamber.

Once the Speaker has spoken to all the party representatives, he or she can give the task of exploring the possibilities of forming a government to one of them. How the procedure for the task is organised, how much time it is to take and whether or not it should be set is decided exclusively by the Speaker. The task may, for example, involve the representative of a party investigating which Riksdag parties support him or her in forming a government.

The party representative should report the result to the Speaker and the Speaker can then either choose to propose the party representative as the new prime minister or resume talks with all the Riksdag party representatives. Then the Speaker can, if he or she wishes, give a similar task to another party representative.

There is no regulated time limit for how long the Speaker has to present a proposal for prime minister. If a proposal does not gain sufficient support when a vote is held in the Riksdag, the Speaker makes a new attempt.

The Speaker may present a total of four proposals for prime minister. If none of these proposals is approved, an extraordinary parliamentary election must be organised within three months, unless an ordinary general election is scheduled for the same period.

The Speaker cannot call for an extraordinary parliamentary election before having presented four proposals for prime minister. The Riksdag must, in other words reject the Speaker's proposal four times for an extraordinary parliamentary election to be called.

A caretaker government is a government that has resigned but remains in place temporarily in order to carry out routine business until a new government takes office.

In principle, a caretaker government has the same powers as an ordinary government, but it may not call an extraordinary parliamentary election. In practice, however, a caretaker government usually only makes decisions on ongoing matters and does not take any new political initiatives.

A caretaker government remains in place until a new government takes office. A caretaker government cannot resign. However, an individual minister may be replaced.

A new government can only be formed when the Riksdag votes in favour of a proposal for prime minister from the Speaker.

An incumbent government may decide to call an extraordinary parliamentary election between ordinary elections. Extraordinary elections should then be held within three months of the decision. Decisions regarding extraordinary elections may not be taken by a caretaker government, that is a government that has resigned but remains in office to carry out routine business until a new government can take office.

If the Riksdag decides that it does not have confidence in the prime minister and votes in favour of a declaration of no confidence, the prime minister, and thus the government, must resign or call an extraordinary election. The prime minister then has a week in which to decide what he or she wants to do.

An extraordinary election should also be called if the Riksdag has said no four times to the Speaker's proposal for a new prime minister. The Speaker cannot call an extraordinary parliamentary election before having presented four proposals for prime minister. The Riksdag must, in other words reject the Speaker's proposal four times for an extraordinary election to be called.

Extraordinary elections do not affect the procedure for ordinary general elections, which take place every four years in September.

An extraordinary parliamentary election has only been held once in Sweden. This was in the election to the Second Chamber on 1 June 1958. The main electoral issue then was the national supplementary pension (ATP).

It is the prime minister who appoints the ministers that will make up the government. In conjunction with the delivery of the Statement of Government Policy, the prime minister announces the names of the ministers that will make up the government. At the same time, the prime minister announces which ministries there will be and the areas of responsibility of each ministry.

On 21 June 2021, the Riksdag voted in favour of a declaration of no confidence in the Prime Minister Stefan Löfven (Social Democratic Party), who asked the Speaker one week later to be discharged from his assignment as Prime Minister. On 5 July, the Speaker proposed that the Riksdag appoint Stefan Löfven as prime minister once again. The proposal was passed in a vote in the Riksdag on 7 July.

Record from the vote on the Speaker's proposal for prime minister on 7 July 2021(pdf, 1 MB)

In the formation of government following the September 2018 elections, a total of three votes on a proposal for prime minister from the Speaker were held. The first vote took place on 14 November. The Speaker's first proposal for a new prime minister, Ulf Kristersson (Moderate Party), was then considered in the Chamber. The Riksdag voted no to the Speaker's proposal as more than half of the members of the Riksdag voted against Ulf Kristersson.

Record from the vote on the Speaker's proposal for prime minister on 14 November 2018(pdf, 1 MB)

The second vote was held on 14 December. The Speaker's second proposal for a new prime minister was then considered in the Chamber. This time the candidate was Stefan Löfven (Social Democratic Party). The Riksdag voted no to the proposal as more than half of the members of the Riksdag voted against it.

Record from the vote on the Speaker's proposal for prime minister on 14 December 2018(pdf, 1 MB)

The third vote was held on 18 January 2019. This time, Stefan Löfven (Social Democratic Party) was chosen as prime minister. This was the Speaker's third proposal during the formation of government following the elections.

Record from the vote on the Speaker's proposal for prime minister on 18 January 2019(pdf, 1 MB)

A vote on a proposal for prime minister was also held on 25 September 2018, when the candidate was Stefan Löfven (Social Democratic Party). However, this was the compulsory vote on the prime minister that takes place after a parliamentary election if the prime minister chooses to remain in office. This is therefore not counted in the four possible proposals for prime minister that the Speaker can present in order to find a candidate for prime minister that can be accepted by the Riksdag.

Record from the vote on the prime minister on 25 September 2018(pdf, 1 MB)