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Sweden is a constitutional monarchy with a unitary state structure and a parliamentary form of government. In the Economist Democracy Index 2024, it received an overall score of 9.39/10 ("full democracy"), and a rating of 9,58/10 for electoral processes and pluralism. The country is a member of the European Union.
The minimum age for both active suffrage (the right to vote) and passive suffrage (the right to stand for election) is 18 years. Non-resident citizens are eligible to vote, but only if they previously had a residence in Sweden. Voting is not compulsory, and in-person voting at embassies as well as postal voting are possible, but online voting or proxy voting are not. Early voting is possible at certain locations in Sweden and abroad before polling day.
Riksdag (Parliament)
Riksdag (Parliament)
The 349-member Riksdag (the unicameral parliament) is elected directly every 4 years. If snap elections take place, the parliament thus elected would only be able to serve the remainder of the previous 4-year term, so the 4-year terms would shift (only the parliament could be replaced in the meantime).
The Riksdag is elected in an open list system according to the principles of proportional representation, using a modified Sainte-Lague method.
The electoral system is practically nationally proportional, but the calculation of seats is quite complicated under the surface, as it is done at two levels, so the representation is also highly localized. The system divides Sweden into 29 multi-member constituencies, in which a total of 310 seats are allocated. The remaining 39 seats are compensatory, not allocated to a constituency in advance.
The seats are allocated using a modified Sainte-Lague method based on the results of each party in a given constituency, and to obtain a seat, it is necessary to reach the 4% national threshold or the 12% legal threshold in a given district. To obtain compensatory seats, however, the national threshold must be reached.
European Parliament
European Parliament
MEPs from Sweden are elected every 5 years (at the same time as in the other EU member states). The entire country forms one constituency, in which 21 MEPs were elected in 2024. Due to "degressive proportionality", Swedish voters have more representatives per capita than the EU average.
The main principle in the election of the Parliament (within the countries) is proportionality: by default, only a proportional system can be used, but beyond this, the member states decide for themselves what type. Sweden, like most member states, uses an open-list proportional system. This means that voters can vote not only for a party list, but also for a candidate on the list, thus allowing them the chance to collectively change the predetermined order of the candidates. The allocation of seats between parties is done using the modified Sainte-Lague (Webster) method, therefore is highly proportional. The legal electoral threshold is 4%, but in practice (due to the 21 seats) a minimum of about 4.5% is required to obtain a seat.
The minimum age for both active suffrage (the right to vote) and passive suffrage (the right to stand for election) is 18 years. Voting is not compulsory, and in-person voting at embassies (from other EU member states and third countries) as well as postal voting are possible, but online voting or proxy voting are not.
Notes
Notes
This is the description of the electoral system of Sweden as of 11.06.2026 on Electoral Knowledgebase. Sources and further information on this topic:
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