Swedish election heads for gridlock

Bloomberg

Sweden’s political establishment is bracing for a punishing on Sunday as voters in the largest Nordic economy look poised to turn out for a nationalist party in big numbers.
The two traditional political blocs are running neck-and-neck, but will be far from winning a majority with anti-immigration Sweden Democrats gaining backers. The ruling Social Democrats could suffer the worst election ever, while the biggest opposition party, the Moderates, may see its backing slide to almost half of what it was early this decade.
The post-election landscape will likely be chaotic, and could cast a broader shadow over Europe amid advances of anti-European Union forces. The former communist Left Party is also poised to make big gains. Party leaders on Saturday warned that the country could face weeks of negotiations after a tense, and sometimes mocking, last debate late on Friday.
Party leaders have kept their post-election strategies close to their vests during the campaign, though all have said they won’t invite the Sweden Democrats into government. The center-right Alliance, led by the Moderates, could attempt to take over even if it becomes the smaller bloc. The Social Democratic-led side may also try to cling to power.
Moderate leader Ulf Kristersson struck a defiant tone in the last days of a dismal campaign. “This government needs to go,” he said at a rally in Stockholm. “It should never have seen the light of day and now we’ll get a clean slate in parliament. A new time will begin in Swedish politics.”
While Kristersson’s party is far from its heyday, his four-party alliance is staging a small comeback in recent polls. In the latest Inizio poll, published by Aftonbladet on Saturday, the center-right bloc extended its lead over the government parties and their Left Party ally.
The Sweden Democrats, calling for an exit from the EU, is polling around 18 percent on average now. It would rise from about 13 percent four years ago after gaining backers amid growing discontent over immigration and rising crime rates. Some outlying polls have shown it could even become the largest after voting closes at 8 pm local time on Sunday.