The voters’ verdict one year after the election

A year has passed since Swedes went to the polls and voted for a change of government.

When asked how the government has delivered on its election promises, the verdict is harsh at least on one of the voters’ heart issues, Aftonbladet/Demoskop’s survey shows.

– In this matter, people still perceive it as the government needs to deliver, says Demoskop’s business area manager Pelle Ahlin Olofsson.

It has been an eventful first year for the Tidö parties in government with a stormy NATO application, escalating gang conflicts, increased terror threat level and a difficult economic situation.

Despite that, one in three voters still say they have a lot or quite a lot of support for the current government, Aftonbladet/Demoskop’s latest voter survey shows.

But when asked if they consider the government to be positive for Sweden, only 37 percent of voters believe it is so, while 50 percent believe it is negative.

– It is important to remember that those who voted for the government parties are usually satisfied, while the opposition voters are more dissatisfied, says Demoskop’s business area manager Pelle Ahlin Olofsson.

Some doubt

He believes that it is therefore more interesting to look at how well the voters, one year after the election, believe that the Tidöparties have delivered on the promises they made to the voters during the election campaign.

In total, three out of ten voters believe that the Tidöparties have delivered a lot or quite well on the promises that they are perceived to have made before the election. But more than twice as many – a total of 63 per cent – ​​believe they have not been delivered well or not delivered at all.

– As expected, we see that the voters of the opposition parties believe to a greater extent that they have not delivered well on their promises. But even among Tidöpartierna’s voters, there are few who believe that they have delivered very well and a relatively large percentage also believe that they have not delivered so well or not at all, says Pelle Ahlin Olofsson and continues:

– There is therefore some doubt even among the Tidöväljars. At the same time, it can be argued that you may need the entire mandate period to succeed when it comes to election promises, if you have not said that it will be completed sooner. But regardless, the government has quite a long way to go as more than half of the voters believe that this government is negative for Sweden.

This is how voters think the government has delivered so far in the following areas:

Sweden’s economy:

– Here comes the harsh judgment and one of the biggest sticking points for the current government. The two most important voter issues right now are law and order, and Sweden’s economy. On the first-mentioned, many believe that they have delivered, while 47 percent of voters believe that they have taken Sweden in a more negative direction regarding the economy. Only 14 percent – ​​and only 1 in 3 voters from the Tidöparties – believe that the Tidöparties have taken Sweden in a more positive direction when it comes to Sweden’s economy.

– The measurement was also made before the announcement that they are stopping the indexation of the state income tax and the employment tax deduction, so it is exciting to see how it will be received in the future.

Reduced tax on fuel:

– When it comes to the prices of fuel, most voters, including those of the Tidö parties, believe that they still haven’t delivered. But with the caveat that this measurement was carried out before the government’s announcement last week about reduced taxes on petrol and diesel. Something that would probably benefit them in a measurement like this, says Pelle Ahlin Olofsson.

Energy and electricity supply:

– There, 41 percent believe that the government has taken Sweden in a more negative direction, but at the same time 24 percent are positive, which may have to do with the Tidö parties’ opening towards more nuclear power.

Law and order:

– Here, on the other hand, it is very clear that the Tidö parties’ voters are very satisfied. It is also interesting that the Center Party and Social Democratic voters to a greater degree believe that they do not know whether the government has taken Sweden in a more positive or negative direction.

– So they are not positive, but at the same time not hugely negative either. There are also S voters who have nothing against the tougher measures announced by the government, compared to V and MP voters who are more negative about this.

Immigration and integration:

– Opinion is also divided here as 34 percent believe that the government in this area has taken Sweden in a more positive direction, while 36 percent believe that it is more negative. However, the Tidö parties think it is very positive.

Defense and Security:

– Here, 40 percent of the voters believe that the government has taken Sweden in a more positive direction, while 19 percent do not think so. On this point, the Tidö party voters are very satisfied and even the opposition voters are not very critical either. It is only among V and MP voters that there is a majority who believe that the Tidö parties have taken Sweden in a more negative direction.

FACTS About the survey:

Read more

Join our opinion panel

Do you want to take part and answer Demoskop’s surveys where we find out what the Swedish people think about, for example, social issues and politics? Results are presented, among other things, in Aftonbladet. Answering is voluntary, you are anonymous and can opt out whenever you want. Click on the link to sign up.