Sweden Democrat blames recent vote loss on new citizenship grants
Tobias Andersson of the Sweden Democrats argued that the party’s defeat was caused by over 200,000 citizenships granted to voters who chose left-wing parties.
Tobias Andersson, a rising figure in the Sweden Democrats, posted on X early on September 13, attributing the party’s recent electoral setback to the issuance of over 200,000 citizenships that voted for opposition parties. He criticized the Moderates, Christian Democrats and Liberals for not suspending the citizenship rollout after the Sweden Democrats won the previous election. The Sweden Democrats saw their vote share fall by three percentage points to 17.5 percent, making them the biggest loser in raw votes.
Party leader Jimmie Åkesson had urged a freeze on new citizenships in November 2024 until a government inquiry’s stricter requirements were applied. Following that, the Migration Agency introduced tighter security checks, cutting citizenship grants by more than half in 2025 and the first half of 2026. Andersson, who previously led the party’s youth wing and chaired the industry and trade committee, used these numbers to explain the party’s loss.
Why it matters
The claim links immigration policy to electoral outcomes, influencing future debates on citizenship rules in Sweden.
How this story developed
- Sep 2 Swedish vote narrows as ruling bloc closes gap with left ahead of Sept 13 poll
- Sep 5 The latest Novus poll shows the opposition lead narrowed to 2.6 points.
- Sep 8 Sweden's right-wing government is paying non-EU residents up to 350,000 crowns to voluntarily depart as the September election nears.
- Sep 11 Indikator poll shows the centre-left opposition narrowly ahead of the governing coalition by 3.2 points.
- Sep 12 Kristersson told supporters that a right‑wing victory would bring the Sweden Democrats into his government.
- Sep 13 The Sweden Democrats have proposed extending the cash‑for‑exit offer to Swedish citizens who would renounce their nationality.
- Sep 13 Polling stations opened at 8:00 a.m. on Sunday as voting began across the country.
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