Social Democrats lose support in historic stronghold of Ådalen

The Social Democrats suffered a historically poor result in Sweden’s parliamentary election, losing support even in Ådalen, a heartland of the labour movement, SVT reports.

In Kramfors, the party received 34.4 percent of the vote, down from 41.6 percent in 2022. Its support stood at 51.8 percent in 2014. The party’s result in the Kramfors municipal election fell by more than 20 percentage points.

“You cannot say that Ådalen and its people have let us down. We have to look at ourselves and consider what we could have done differently,” said Tomas Litström, a longtime Social Democrat in Kramfors municipality. He said the party must be more attentive to voters.

Ådalen has a central place in the labour movement’s history. In 1931, soldiers opened fire on workers taking part in a demonstration in Kramfors. The region was once a thriving industrial district, with paper mills, log floating and around 40 steam-powered sawmills. Depopulation, factory closures and distrust of central government in Stockholm have since left deep marks, SVT reports.