Swedish general election, 1985
Encyclopedia
Elections to the Swedish
Riksdag
held 15 September 1985.
on 22 August, Minister of social welfare Sten Andersson
promised to increase the state pensions as a compensation for the price increases following the devaluation
of the krona in 1982. The social democratic government also stressed that it had managed to decrease the budget deficit from 90 billion to 60 billion kronas. The Social Democrats
(Socialdemokraterna) also promised not to increase taxes or lower the quality of the welfare system.
The Centre Party
(Centerpartiet) had a technical cooperation with the Christian Democrats
(Kristdemokraterna). The Christian Democrats always received fewer votes than the 4 %-threshold for gaining seats to the Riksdag. The cooperation was criticized within the Centre Party. The aim was for both parties to gain votes but in the end, the Centre Party decreased its share of the votes compared to the previous election. The Christian Democrats only gained one seat in parliament for its leader, Alf Svensson
.
The political debate was dominated by the Moderate Party
(Moderaterna) and the social democrats. In January 1985, the Moderate Party had proposed in parliament a detailed plan with tax cuts and cuts in spending. The Social Democrats' leader Olof Palme
managed to turn this against the Moderate Party by repeating the negative effects this would have on junior soccer teams. In an opinion poll by SIFO
in June 1985 the Moderate Party was supported by 30 percent but their support decreased during the campaign.
The Liberal People's Party
(Folkpartiet) had chosen Bengt Westerberg
as its party leader in October 1983 but he had had trouble getting his message through, not least because of the party's small size in parliament and only receiving a 5.9 percent support in the 1982 election. But in August Westerberg got a public breakthrough as a calm and honest politician compared to the constantly arguing Adelsohn
and Palme. In the end, the Liberal People's Party was the big winner of the 1985 election by increasing its support to 14.2 percent.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
Riksdag
Parliament of Sweden
The Riksdag is the national legislative assembly of Sweden. The riksdag is a unicameral assembly with 349 members , who are elected on a proportional basis to serve fixed terms of four years...
held 15 September 1985.
Election campaign
At a campaign meeting in SundsvallSundsvall
-External links:* - Official site from Nordisk Familjebok - Sundsvalls tourist information bureau. - The alternative guide to Sundsvall. - Blog with photos from Sundsvall....
on 22 August, Minister of social welfare Sten Andersson
Sten Andersson
* Not to be confused with Sten Christer Andersson , who was a long-time member of the centre-right Moderate Party and subsequently a member of the far-right Sweden Democrats ....
promised to increase the state pensions as a compensation for the price increases following the devaluation
Devaluation
Devaluation is a reduction in the value of a currency with respect to those goods, services or other monetary units with which that currency can be exchanged....
of the krona in 1982. The social democratic government also stressed that it had managed to decrease the budget deficit from 90 billion to 60 billion kronas. The Social Democrats
Swedish Social Democratic Party
The Swedish Social Democratic Workers' Party, , contesting elections as 'the Workers' Party – the Social Democrats' , or sometimes referred to just as 'the Social Democrats' and most commonly as Sossarna ; is the oldest and largest political party in Sweden. The party was founded in 1889...
(Socialdemokraterna) also promised not to increase taxes or lower the quality of the welfare system.
The Centre Party
Centre Party (Sweden)
The Centre Party is a centrist political party in Sweden. The party maintains close ties to rural Sweden and describes itself as "a green social liberal party". The ideology is sometimes called agrarian, but in a European context, the Centre Party can perhaps best be characterized as social...
(Centerpartiet) had a technical cooperation with the Christian Democrats
Christian Democrats (Sweden)
The Christian Democrats ) is a political party in Sweden. The party was founded in 1964 but did not enter parliament until 1985 in an electoral cooperation with the Centre Party and on the Christian Democrats' own accord in 1991. The leader since April 3, 2004 is Göran Hägglund. He succeeded Alf...
(Kristdemokraterna). The Christian Democrats always received fewer votes than the 4 %-threshold for gaining seats to the Riksdag. The cooperation was criticized within the Centre Party. The aim was for both parties to gain votes but in the end, the Centre Party decreased its share of the votes compared to the previous election. The Christian Democrats only gained one seat in parliament for its leader, Alf Svensson
Alf Svensson
Alf Robert Olof Svensson is a Swedish politician and Member of the European Parliament from 2009. Alf was the leader of the Christian Democrats in Sweden between 1973 and 3 April 2004. He was a Member of Parliament from 1985 to 1988 and again from 1991 until his election to the European Parliament...
.
The political debate was dominated by the Moderate Party
Moderate Party
The Moderate Party is a centre-right, liberal conservative political party in Sweden. The party was founded in 1904 as the General Electoral League by a group of conservatives in the Swedish parliament...
(Moderaterna) and the social democrats. In January 1985, the Moderate Party had proposed in parliament a detailed plan with tax cuts and cuts in spending. The Social Democrats' leader Olof Palme
Olof Palme
Sven Olof Joachim Palme was a Swedish politician. A long-time protegé of Prime Minister Tage Erlander, Palme led the Swedish Social Democratic Party from 1969 to his assassination, and was a two-term Prime Minister of Sweden, heading a Privy Council Government from 1969 to 1976 and a cabinet...
managed to turn this against the Moderate Party by repeating the negative effects this would have on junior soccer teams. In an opinion poll by SIFO
Sifo
SIFO is a Swedish company earlier known as Sifo Research International in the area of opinion and social research. The company was founded in 1954 as Svenska institutet för opinionsundersökningar and known by the public under the abbreviation SIFO which is one of the strongest brands in Sweden...
in June 1985 the Moderate Party was supported by 30 percent but their support decreased during the campaign.
The Liberal People's Party
Liberal People's Party (Sweden)
The Liberal People's Party is a political party in Sweden. The party advocates social liberalism and is part of the governing centre-right coalition The Alliance, which achieved a majority in the general election of 17 September 2006...
(Folkpartiet) had chosen Bengt Westerberg
Bengt Westerberg
Bengt Carl Gustaf Westerberg was a Swedish politician. He is the son of Carl-Erik Westerberg and his wife Barbro...
as its party leader in October 1983 but he had had trouble getting his message through, not least because of the party's small size in parliament and only receiving a 5.9 percent support in the 1982 election. But in August Westerberg got a public breakthrough as a calm and honest politician compared to the constantly arguing Adelsohn
Ulf Adelsohn
Ulf Adelsohn is a Swedish politician, leader of the Moderate Party from 1981 to 1986 and landshövding of Stockholm County in 1992-2001...
and Palme. In the end, the Liberal People's Party was the big winner of the 1985 election by increasing its support to 14.2 percent.
Results
| Party | Leader | Votes | Seats | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | % | +− % | # | +− | |||
| Social Democrats Swedish Social Democratic Party The Swedish Social Democratic Workers' Party, , contesting elections as 'the Workers' Party – the Social Democrats' , or sometimes referred to just as 'the Social Democrats' and most commonly as Sossarna ; is the oldest and largest political party in Sweden. The party was founded in 1889... |
Olof Palme Olof Palme Sven Olof Joachim Palme was a Swedish politician. A long-time protegé of Prime Minister Tage Erlander, Palme led the Swedish Social Democratic Party from 1969 to his assassination, and was a two-term Prime Minister of Sweden, heading a Privy Council Government from 1969 to 1976 and a cabinet... |
2,487,551 | 44.68 | −0.93 | 159 | −7 | |
| Moderate Party Moderate Party The Moderate Party is a centre-right, liberal conservative political party in Sweden. The party was founded in 1904 as the General Electoral League by a group of conservatives in the Swedish parliament... |
Ulf Adelsohn Ulf Adelsohn Ulf Adelsohn is a Swedish politician, leader of the Moderate Party from 1981 to 1986 and landshövding of Stockholm County in 1992-2001... |
1,187,335 | 21.33 | −2.31 | 76 | −10 | |
| People's Party Liberal People's Party (Sweden) The Liberal People's Party is a political party in Sweden. The party advocates social liberalism and is part of the governing centre-right coalition The Alliance, which achieved a majority in the general election of 17 September 2006... |
Bengt Westerberg Bengt Westerberg Bengt Carl Gustaf Westerberg was a Swedish politician. He is the son of Carl-Erik Westerberg and his wife Barbro... |
792,268 | 14.23 | +8.33 | 51 | +30 | |
| Centre Party Centre Party (Sweden) The Centre Party is a centrist political party in Sweden. The party maintains close ties to rural Sweden and describes itself as "a green social liberal party". The ideology is sometimes called agrarian, but in a European context, the Centre Party can perhaps best be characterized as social... 1 |
Thorbjörn Fälldin Thorbjörn Fälldin Thorbjörn Fälldin is a Swedish politician. He was Prime Minister of Sweden in three non-consecutive cabinets from 1976 to 1982, and leader of the Swedish Centre Party from 1971 to 1985... |
691,258 | 12.42 | −3.06 | 44 | −12 | |
| Left Party - Communists Left Party (Sweden) The Left Party is a socialist and feminist political party in Sweden, from 1967 to 1990 known as the Left Party – The Communists .On welfare issues, the party opposes privatizations... |
Lars Werner Lars Werner Lars Helge Werner is a Swedish politician. A construction worker by profession, he was elected the chairman of the Left Party - Communists in 1975 and was a member of the Swedish parliament from 1965 to 1994. During his time as party leader, in 1990, the party changed its name to the Left Party,... |
298,419 | 5.36 | −0.20 | 19 | −1 | |
| Green Party Green Party (Sweden) -External links:**... |
Ragnhild Pohanka and Per Gahrton Per Gahrton Carl Per Gunnar Gahrton is a Swedish politician. He was a Member of Parliament, holding a seat for the Liberal Party from 1976 to 1979, and for the Green Party from 1988 to 1991, and again in 1994-95... |
83,645 | 1.50 | −0.15 | — | — | |
| Others2 | — | 26,546 | 0.48 | — | — | — | |
| No. of valid votes | 5,567,022 | 100.00 | 349 | ||||
| Invalid votes | 48,220 | ||||||
| Total | 5,615,242 (89.93%) |
||||||
- 1Christian Democrats had candidates on the lists of the Centre Party. Christian Democrats had one MP elected, Alf SvenssonAlf SvenssonAlf Robert Olof Svensson is a Swedish politician and Member of the European Parliament from 2009. Alf was the leader of the Christian Democrats in Sweden between 1973 and 3 April 2004. He was a Member of Parliament from 1985 to 1988 and again from 1991 until his election to the European Parliament...
. - 2One source (http://www.arbetarmakt.com/nyhetsbrev/nr130.php) claims that the Socialist PartySocialist Party (Sweden)The Socialistiska Partiet is a Swedish political party, the Swedish section of the Fourth International. The party was formed at a congress in 1971, through the merger of the Revolutionary Marxists and the Bolshevik Group . Initially it was called League of Revolutionary Marxists...
got around 18,000 votes.