Sweden’s newly elected Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson has announced her resignation just hours after writing history as the country’s first female prime minister.
“I have told the president that I want to resign as prime minister,” Andersson told reporters on Wednesday in Stockholm, after the coalition led by her Social Democratic party was dissolved. The 54-year-old Andersson will reportedly seek new support after the Green Party has left the new ruling minority coalition in the wake of a budget defeat.
The coalition would rule with a sharp margin of support after the new prime minister was elected on Wednesday with more votes against her than for her in parliament. The vote was 117 members of parliament for Andersson, Sweden’s Minister of Finance, and 174 against her, with 57 legislators abstaining or absent. Swedish law allows prime ministers to be appointed and govern as long as a majority of the Riksdag – 175 members of the Riksdag – does not vote against them.
Andersson’s historic victory, which made Sweden the last Nordic country to have a female head of state, was quickly followed by a bill, however, as the Center Party refused to join other coalition members in supporting the government’s budget proposal. Members of the Riksdag instead adopted a rival budget proposed by three conservative parties, including the Sweden Democrats.
Although Andersson had said she could govern the country with the opposition budget, the Greens refused, and co-leader Marta Stenevi told reporters that the party sought power to push through its own policies. “It is not the task of the Green Party in politics to implement a budget that has been negotiated with the Sweden Democrats.”
Andersson then said that she did not want to lead a government “where there may be reason to question its legitimacy”. She is said to have told the Speaker of the Riksdag Andreas Norlen that she is interested in leading a Social Democratic one-party government. Sweden has a parliamentary election planned for next September.
The Social Democrats had chosen Andersson as a replacement for Stefan Lofven, who resigned as prime minister and party leader earlier this month. Lofven announced his intention to resign in August in the midst of political conflicts, including a vote of no confidence against him, and hoped to give his successor “the best conditions” for next year’s election.
(RT.com)
Source: sn.dk