[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunwoo Lee] The Swedish parliament passed a vote of no confidence against Prime Minister Stefan L?fven, leading to the collapse of the coalition government. This is the first time in Sweden that a prime minister has lost a no-confidence vote.
According to AFP and other foreign media on the 21st (local time), the Swedish parliament approved the no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Stefan L?fven. In the vote, 181 out of 349 members of parliament supported the no-confidence motion, marking the first time in history that a sitting prime minister was defeated in a no-confidence vote.
Prime Minister L?fven, who has held the position since 2014, now faces a situation where he must decide within a week whether to resign or call for an early election. If he resigns, the Speaker of the parliament is expected to begin negotiations with political parties to form a new government. If an early election is held, it would be the first early election since 1958.
This no-confidence vote occurred after L?fven, a member of the center-left Social Democratic Party, agreed to ease regulations on rental prices for newly built apartments, prompting the Left Party to withdraw its support for the coalition government. The far-right Sweden Democrats then initiated the no-confidence motion.
L?fven’s coalition government, composed of the Social Democrats and the Green Party, has relied on the support of the Left Party and two other center-right parties in parliament. If a new coalition is formed, it is expected to last only until the general election scheduled for September next year.
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