Sweden Democrats drop cabinet demands, easing Kristersson's path to power

The Sweden Democrats, an ally of Sweden's right-wing caretaker government, said on Friday it was dropping its demands for ministerial posts, in a move that could help Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson stay in power. The party's leader, Jimmie Akesson, said that because of the election result his party will remain outside government for the next four years and is prepared to "tolerate" the formation of a centre-right cabinet.

Kristersson's bloc lost its majority in a September election, but Sweden's parliament speaker this week asked him to explore a government formation after the centre-left election winners failed to agree on a coalition. Swedish broadcaster Reuters reported the sequence of events.

The Centre Party could hold the key to whether Sweden gets a right-wing or a left-wing government. It has ruled out supporting a cabinet that includes either the Sweden Democrats or the Left Party, and it has said it favours Social Democrats leader Magdalena Andersson as prime minister.

The Centre Party did not have an immediate comment. Parliament Speaker Andreas Norlen is widely expected to return the mandate to Andersson if Kristersson fails to win a majority. If no solution is found, the report said, Sweden could face a new election.