Sweden's political crisis is dragging on. Parliamentary Speaker Andreas Norlén announced Friday he is giving Social Democrat leader Magdalena Andersson another chance to form a government, just four days after she gave up and returned her first mandate.
Andersson must now report back to the speaker by October 12 — though she can ask for more time. The new mandate formally begins October 5, and Norlén confirmed a parliamentary vote on a prime minister will follow her second attempt.
The numbers haven't moved. Andersson's centre-left bloc — Social Democrats, Left Party, Centre Party and Greens — holds 176 of the Riksdag's 349 seats against 173 for outgoing Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson's right-wing coalition. The Social Democrats finished as the largest single party with 99 seats.
What killed her first attempt wasn't arithmetic — it was her own allies. Andersson quit on September 28, saying there was "currently no possibility" to form a government, after the Left Party backed a Moderate Party candidate for parliamentary speaker over the weekend. She said the move undercut her negotiations.
The red-green camp remains split down the middle. The Left Party is demanding ministerial posts in an Andersson government. The Centre Party refuses to sit in any government that includes the Left. Neither side is budging.
Norlén's reasoning was blunt: "It is exactly the same election result, the same distribution of seats, and the same parties that are designating her as their leading candidate for prime minister… so it is reasonable for her to resume her exploratory talks."
Even Kristersson called the decision natural, saying that as long as 176 MPs want Andersson to form the next government, parliament should test whether she can assemble the support.
If she fails again, the mandate could finally pass to Kristersson — who would need to peel at least one centre-left party away from Andersson while keeping the far-right Sweden Democrats onside. Nobody in Stockholm is betting on a quick resolution.