Gabrielsson says V has not dropped minister demand

Ida Gabrielsson of the Left Party says the party’s demand for ministerial posts had been discussed as part of possible negotiations, but insists it has not changed its position. She made the remarks on SVT’s Aktuellt programme.

Gabrielsson said the party had been ready to make concessions on many important issues. “That was the most difficult thing, but the Centre Party did not question it,” she said. “I thought we would instead get an offer about which political concession the Centre Party wanted.”

She said the Centre Party had changed course because it campaigned with Magdalena Andersson as its candidate for prime minister and had not mentioned opening the way for a right-wing government or one dependent on support from the Sweden Democrats.

Gabrielsson said she was convinced that “the process is rigged” and accused the Centre Party leader of wanting to hand the party over to Sweden Democrats leader Jimmie Åkesson. In a post on X, she wrote that if the Centre Party closed the door to Åkesson, the parties that had won the election could negotiate, make concessions and compromise. But, she added, the Centre Party had to close that door itself.

After the programme, Gabrielsson posted a clarification on X, saying the Left Party had not changed its position. Her point, she wrote, was that the ministerial demand made no difference now that the Centre Party was prepared to turn to the Sweden Democrats.

Centre Party leader Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist said on Friday that her party wanted a “total package” from both the Social Democrats and the Moderates before choosing which side to support. Magdalena Andersson and Ulf Kristersson have until Friday to present their proposals. On Sunday, Andersson said the Social Democrats wanted to govern with the Green Party and the Centre Party. Thand Ringqvist said the Centre Party would wait to comment until it had received the proposals.