Sweden’s center-left bloc leads close election against right-wing government

Sweden’s national election results show a narrow lead for the center-left opposition over the right-wing government, which could halt the Nordic nation’s drift away from its liberal heritage.

The left-leaning bloc, headed by the Social Democrats’ leader Magdalena Andersson, is expected to win 176 seats in the 349-seat parliament, the Riksdag, based on votes from 6,195 of Sweden’s 6,312 election districts, the election authority says.

The right-wing governing bloc of Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson is seen winning 173 seats, with ballot-counting continuing, and with a final results expected to come on Wednesday at the earliest.

The election, while unlikely to change the course of Sweden’s pro-Western and pro-Ukraine stance, could decide whether Kristersson’s push toward a hard-right clampdown on migration continues or even accelerates.

Given the closeness of the race, the winner may not be known for several days, after all overseas ballots have been counted.