Sweden Democrats’ reshuffle sends Tobias Andersson to a lower-profile role

The Sweden Democrats have moved several senior politicians to new parliamentary committee roles, with Tobias Andersson’s transfer described as a clear demotion by SVT political reporter Daniel Ingmo.

When the Riksdag’s committees met on Tuesday, the party’s new assignments became clear. Andersson, who had chaired the Committee on Industry and Trade, is moving to the Committee on Education.

“There is no other way to describe it than a demotion,” Ingmo said, noting that Andersson will now have a secondary role on the education committee.

Andersson told SVT he could not say exactly why he was being moved, adding that new challenges lay ahead. Ingmo said the decision could be linked to Andersson’s public disagreements with party leadership, including during debate over AR-15 rifles after the mass shooting at Risbergska campus.

Ingmo also pointed to the party’s decline in the election, saying it may want to try something new. He said Andersson’s public image may not always have benefited the party, and that he may not be seen as the person to give a prominent role as it plans for the future.

Other senior figures are also changing roles. Former economic policy spokesperson Oscar Sjöstedt will chair the Committee on the Constitution, while former migration policy spokesperson Ludvig Aspling will join it as a member. Former parliamentary group leader Linda Lindberg will chair the Committee on Social Affairs. Ingmo said those moves took Sjöstedt and Lindberg away from the political spotlight, but were not outright demotions.

Mattias Karlsson will chair the Committee on Cultural Affairs, Henrik Vinge will join the Committee on Finance, Matheus Enholm will become parliamentary group leader, and Jessica Stegrud will take over as migration policy spokesperson.