Minority Governments in Sweden

Abstract

The outstanding aspect of the Swedish parliamentary system in recent years has been a series of minority governments. Six ministries since 1920 have been able to muster only a minority support in the Riksdag. This inability of any party to obtain a majority may be attributed in part to the fact that six parties, four major and two minor, are represented. A brief review of party history may assist in understanding the present situation.The parliamentary reform of 1866 which abolished the four estates of the old Riksdag and established a two-chamber parliament substituted parties for classes. The organization of the two houses resulted in Conservative control of the first chamber and Agrarian (Lantmannapartiets) domination of the second. The practice of voting jointly on bills rejected by one house saved the situation from becoming a deadlock. In 1888 the issue of protection temporarily split the Agrarian party, but it reunited in 1895 on a moderate protectionist platform. This party represented the rural communities of the kingdom and was by nature conservative. As the cities grew in population, a party more representative of the middle class in the urban communities, the Liberals, gained strength. In 1903 the Liberals captured 102 seats in the second chamber; and, in opposition to the Conservatives, they organized their first ministry under Staaff in 1905. The increasing industrialization of Sweden resulted in the emergence of a fourth party, the Social Democrats, composed largely of the laboring classes. Hjalmar Branting, editor of the party's official organ, Socialdemokraten, was elected to the Riksdag in 1896; but for a number of years the Social Democrats controlled only a few seats. The franchise reforms of 1911 and 1921 resulted in great accessions of strength, and since 1919 this party has been the strongest single group in both houses. It now lacks only twelve of having a majority in the lower house, thirty-five of having a majority in both houses. Its adherents hope to close this gap at the elections of next autumn.