Sweden’s lowest voter turnout found in Södertälje district

Voter participation in the Ronna district of Södertälje was the lowest in Sweden during the last general election, with fewer than 40 percent of eligible voters casting ballots, according to a report by SVT Nyheter. Research suggests social and economic factors—and even simple visual cues like “I voted” stickers—could help reverse the trend.

In Ronna Norra, only 39.9 percent of eligible voters participated in the 2022 parliamentary election, the lowest rate nationwide. Fadi Ayyal, a local resident, told SVT he remains undecided about voting this autumn. “I need to look into which party and candidate I actually like,” he said.

Henrik Ekengren Oscarsson, a political science professor and election researcher at the University of Gothenburg, explained that turnout is influenced by income, education, employment status, and foreign background. Nationally, Sweden’s 2022 voter turnout stood at 84.2 percent, but several socially vulnerable districts saw participation drop below 50 percent.

“Voter turnout is a measure of social integration,” Oscarsson said. He described voting as a “flock behavior,” where people are more likely to participate if they see others doing the same. Married couples, for example, vote more often than single individuals because “humans like to do things together.”

Traditional political campaigns urging people to vote have proven ineffective in low-turnout areas, Oscarsson noted. Instead, small social cues—like “I voted” stickers worn during Sweden’s 18-day early voting period—can create peer pressure. “Being in a network where someone tells you to vote makes a difference,” he said, citing examples like a motivated neighbor or friend.