Hej,
There's one week to go until Sweden's September 13th election and we're stepping up our election coverage here at The Local. Why did I make 2026 the year to stop drinking coffee?
Earlier this year I asked readers how you would like us to cover the Swedish election.
You answered that you would like us to help you understand Swedish politics and the election, be kept updated on political news, and be exposed to different perspectives.
So we've looked at how party election pledges could affect foreigners in Sweden, produced a series of in-depth guides to the eight political parties, explained how to vote, interviewed migration spokespeople ranging from the Social Democrats to the Sweden Democrats, and reported the latest twists and turns of the whole election campaign rollercoaster.
There's of course much more, and you can read all our articles in our dedicated election section.
The article series I've enjoyed working on the most is my interviews with foreign professionals voting for the first time in Sweden. They're proof, if any were needed, that new citizens already take their citizenship very seriously, contrary to what has often been insinuated in the political debate in the past year. Thanks to everyone who's taken part.
This coming week we're going to step it up another notch.
We'll be running a live blog Monday-Friday as well as, of course, well into the night on Sunday, Election Day. We'll also spend at least an hour every day answering members' questions about the election in a special "Members Q&A" (keep an eye out on Monday).
On Election Night, we'll have journalists at the parties' election vigils in Stockholm, to try to get the latest reactions and comments to whatever happens after the polls close.
As I've said before, there's never been a better time to be a member of The Local.
Because we're not just covering the Swedish election – we're covering it for you. Our reader-focused coverage of Sweden's citizenship reforms led to one of the political news stories of the year – the impact of which will continue to be felt after the election.
The Local's paying members help us sustain and develop our journalism so that we can continue to be the best news source and champion for foreign residents in Sweden. Thank you.
I hope you'll join us next week and Election Night. Don't hesitate to pop into the comments under the articles or my inbox just to say hi and share your thoughts. Because if there's one thing you can be sure of, it's that our election coverage will always put foreigners in Sweden first.
Election news
The Social Democrats are planning to launch a government inquiry which will carry out a major review of the country's migration legislation, arguing that years of piecemeal reforms have made the rules unnecessarily complicated and contradictory.
The Russian live-in partner of Gustav Gellerbrant, a Sweden Democrat official who works in the heart of Sweden's government offices, has been spreading pro-Putin propaganda on social media, the Expo news site has reported in an investigation.
The Social Democrats told The Local if they win the election in Stockholm as well as regional elections, they will set up a new 'expat welcome desk' for foreign workers arriving in the city.
Nearly one million people cast their ballots in the week after early voting opened in Sweden on August 26th – a 40 percent increase compared to the same period in the 2022 election.
A far-right demagogue in a medium-sized Swedish town could enter the Riksdag on the most extreme platform of any party in recent times. So who are the Örebro Party and Markus Allard? The Local's James Savage explained in our latest Politics in Sweden analysis.
Sweden's right-wing Tidö bloc showed a united front at a press conference this week, after Christian Democrat leader Ebba Busch promised not to back Magdalena Andersson as prime minister even if the alternative was a new election.
In other news
The Local's Richard Orange interviewed a chef who worked for more than three years in Sweden after missing the Brexit deadline. The chef has since lost his job, unemployment insurance and risks deportation.
Many, perhaps most, of the 100,000 people in the queue when the new citizenship law came into force on June 6th will not meet the new requirements, meaning there's likely to be a wave of rejections. Here's what to do if your application is rejected.
Sweden's migration minister defended the country's unusually high refusal rate for post-Brexit residency in response to a parliamentary question asking what action he will take to stop high profile deportations of elderly British citizens.
Residents in southern Sweden can expect to pay around 700 kronor more per month for their electricity this winter compared to last year. Further north, cost increases will be more modest, provided forecasts hold true.
A record number of tourists visited Stockholm this summer, according to figures reviewed by the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce.
And finally, if you like and trust The Local's coverage you can easily add us as a preferred source on Google to make sure our articles appear in your searches.
Thanks for reading,
Emma Löfgren
Editor, The Local Sweden