Sweden Democrats government is now openly on the table in Sweden after the Liberals said they would accept the far-right party as part of a future coalition if the right wins the general election on 13 September 2026. The move marks a major reversal for a party that had long insisted the Sweden Democrats could support a government, but not formally join it. It has immediately triggered criticism from the opposition and deep tensions inside the Liberals themselves.
The shift was announced on Friday by Liberal leader Simona Mohamsson alongside Sweden Democrats leader Jimmie Åkesson. Mohamsson said the two parties had agreed on a written framework for future cooperation and argued that the Sweden Democrats had changed. “At its core, this is about SD having changed,” she said in an interview with SVT, adding that the party had now shown both greater policy alignment and a more “constructive” approach.
Mohamsson says the Sweden Democrats have changed
The decision is a striking turnaround. As recently as October, Mohamsson had signed a debate article arguing that the Sweden Democrats should not be allowed into government. Five months later, she is now defending the opposite line.
Asked by SVT why her position had changed so quickly, Mohamsson said she had previously concluded that the two parties did not share enough common ground on key policy issues and that she had not seen enough willingness to cooperate. She now says that assessment has changed because the new agreement shows that the Sweden Democrats have accepted several liberal and social-liberal policy priorities.
That argument is central to the Liberal leadership’s defence of the deal. Mohamsson is presenting the reversal not as ideological surrender, but as a pragmatic effort to secure influence for liberal policy inside the Swedish right. She has also framed it as a matter of governing responsibility, saying voters are tired of political manoeuvring and want clearer choices before the election.
The new line goes beyond the current Tidö model
Since the 2022 election, Sweden has been governed by a minority coalition led by Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and made up of the Moderates, the Christian Democrats and the Liberals, with parliamentary backing from the Sweden Democrats under the Tidö Agreement. That model gave the far-right party substantial influence over legislation and policy priorities, especially on migration and law and order, while keeping it formally outside cabinet.
The new Liberal position goes further. It removes the party’s previous red line against giving the Sweden Democrats ministerial posts. Reuters reported that the two parties have also agreed on a series of joint priorities, including a referendum in 2030 on whether Sweden should join the euro area, as well as a “restrictive, but humane” migration policy. Other reported elements of the agreement include closer cooperation on schools, energy, economic policy and crime.
In practical terms, the shift is an attempt to make the right-wing bloc look more cohesive ahead of September’s election. It is also a recognition of political arithmetic: the Sweden Democrats are the largest party on the right, and they have repeatedly made clear that they do not want to keep backing a government from outside indefinitely.
A backlash is growing inside the Liberals
The strongest reaction has come from inside the Liberals themselves. According to SVT, the party board voted 13 to 8 in favour of opening the door to the Sweden Democrats joining government, exposing a deep internal split.
Several prominent Liberal figures have publicly criticised the decision or signalled that they may step down if the line is confirmed. Malin Sjöberg Högrell, chair of Liberal Women (Liberala kvinnor), told SVT that she never expected the party to sign its own agreement with the Sweden Democrats and warned that the choice could become disastrous for the party. Before the meeting, she had said she could not support cooperation with what she described as a racist party.
Other party figures have taken similar positions. Stockholm politician Jan Jönsson said he could not remain on the party board if the red line against the Sweden Democrats was dropped. Economic policy spokesperson Cecilia Rönn said she would not stand in the parliamentary election if the decision remains in place after the extraordinary party meeting. Local politicians in Uppsala, Malmö, Lidingö and Sundsvall have also said they may leave, refuse to campaign or decline to run again.
The criticism matters because it is not limited to political opponents. It comes from long-standing Liberal representatives who see the issue as one of values rather than short-term tactics. For them, the question is not only whether the party can win votes through a harder line, but whether it can still credibly present itself as a liberal force after removing its clearest boundary against the far right.
Why this is such a sensitive step in Swedish politics
The Sweden Democrats have moved closer to the political mainstream over the past decade and already exercise considerable influence over the current government’s agenda. But their possible entry into cabinet would still mark a major symbolic and institutional shift.
Reuters noted in 2022 that the party, founded by figures linked to white supremacist milieus, had already become central to the formation of the Swedish right. Even so, many politicians and voters across the political spectrum remained uncomfortable with seeing it formally enter government. That hesitation has been especially strong among Liberals, whose identity has traditionally been tied to civil liberties, minority rights and pro-European politics.
That is why Mohamsson’s claim that the party has changed is being scrutinised so closely. Critics argue that the issue is not only whether the Sweden Democrats have moderated some policy positions, but whether their broader political culture and worldview are compatible with a party that still calls itself liberal.
The next test comes on 22 March
The immediate political battle is now moving inside the Liberal party. An extraordinary national meeting is due to take place on 22 March, when the new line is expected to be tested and Simona Mohamsson’s authority as leader could also come under pressure.
That meeting will matter well beyond the Liberals. If the decision is confirmed, Sweden’s right will go into the autumn election with a much clearer message that all four Tidö parties could govern together. If it is rejected, the right-wing bloc could enter the campaign divided over the basic question of who should be allowed to hold power.
More broadly, the episode reflects a deeper trend in Nordic and European politics: parties that once treated the far right as untouchable are increasingly debating not whether to cooperate with it, but on what terms. In Sweden, that debate has now reached one of the last parties that had tried to maintain a formal red line.
