With more than 97 percent of ballots counted, the national election commission reported that the governing center-left Social Democrats had 28.4 percent of the vote, making it the largest single vote-getter, but handing the party its worst showing in decades. The center-right Moderate party was next at 19.2 percent, while the far-right Sweden Democrats were running third, with 17.6 percent, up from 12.9 percent in 2014 but a less successful showing than many Swedes had feared. Some polls had predicted that the Sweden Democrats would come in second, with more than 20 percent of the vote. The red-green bloc of center-left, leftist and environmental parties, led by the Social Democrats, had 40.7 percent of the vote. The results mean neither bloc can command a majority in Parliament, and both have rejected the idea of any deal with the Sweden Democrats.

Source: New York Times September 09, 2018 23:26 UTC