Sweden’s Lofven Wins Parliament Backing to Form New Cabinet

  • Social Democrat Leader wins by 2 votes to return as premier
  • Lofven may struggle to push through budget plan in the fall
Stefan Lofven, right, in Parliament in Stockholm, Sweden on July 7.Photographer: Christine Olsson/AFP/Getty Images
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Sweden’s interim Prime Minister Stefan Lofven won a narrow vote in parliament to form a new coalition government as he seeks to keep the far-right from gaining influence in the largest Nordic nation.

Lofven, 63, resigned as prime minister just three weeks ago, following a no-confidence vote triggered by a plan to deregulate rental housing. The vote on Wednesday doesn’t necessarily end his political troubles even as it adds to his track record of surviving seemingly intractable conflicts.