| Parliament name (generic / translated) |
Riksdagen / Parliament |
| Structure of parliament |
Unicameral |
| LEGAL FRAMEWORK |
| Electoral Law |
1 June 1997
Last amendment: 01.01.2006 |
| Mode of designation |
directly elected 349 |
| Constituencies |
- 29 multi-member constituencies for 310 members (2 to 34 seats each; the number of seats per constituency is revised at each election based on the number of eligible voters)
- 1 other multi-member constituency for 39 "at large" seats
|
| Voting system |
Proportional:
For 310 seats:
- members are elected under the closed-party list system with preferential vote;
- seats are proportionally distributed according to the modified Sainte-Laguë method;
- to be awarded a seat, a party must obtain either at least 4 per cent of the votes cast throughout the country or 12 per cent of the votes cast in a constituency;
- votes are cast for party lists, and electors may also express specific preferences for individual candidates. In such cases, the required threshold for election on the basis of personal votes is 8 per cent of the total cast for the candidate's party in the constituency concerned.
For the 39 remaining ("at-large") seats:
- the remaining seats are allotted by the system of full proportional representation based on the votes obtained nationwide;
- to be awarded a seat, a party must obtain at least 4 per cent of the votes cast throughout the country.
Vacancies arising between general elections are filled by a substitute member chosen at the same time as the elected member.
Elections are held for all seats in Parliament on the normal expiry of the members' term of office (four years). They are held on the third Sunday in September of the election year.
Voting is not compulsory. |
| Voter requirements |
- age: at least 18 years old on election day
- Swedish citizenship (including naturalized citizens)
- there is no residence requirement
- citizens overseas can vote under certain conditions: they must be on the special electoral roll, which includes citizens who have emigrated during the past ten years or who have notified the tax authorities of their wish to be on the electoral roll no later than 16 August of the election year (non-registered citizens may still be included in the electoral roll on condition that their ballot paper arrives before 14 September of the election year)
- disqualifications: holders of temporary entry permits, undocumented immigrants |
| CANDIDATES |
| Eligibility |
- qualified electors
- age: at least 18 years old on election day
- Swedish citizenship (including naturalized citizens)
- there is no residence requirement
- citizens overseas are eligible under certain conditions (if they are on the special electoral roll mentioned under voter requirements)
- ineligibilities: holders of temporary entry permits, undocumented immigrants |
| Incompatibilities |
- ministers of State
- speaker of the Parliament
Although ministers and the speaker may not serve as members of parliament while in office, they may retain their seats, which are held by substitute members in the meantime. The ministers and the speaker may take up their parliamentary duties when they give up the posts mentioned above. |
| Candidacy requirements |
- nomination by a registered political party
- the names of the titular and substitute member must be submitted simultaneously
|
Compare data for parliamentary chambers in the Electoral system module
