A Somalian migrant elected to the Swedish parliament has taken a leave of absence amid an investigation into potential voter fraud that could swing the result of this month’s general election, which saw the left-wing bloc secure a razor-thin majority.
Bolstered largely by demographic changes in recent decades, the left-wing coalition led by the Social Democrats won a narrow victory over the governing conservative bloc of Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, with 49.6 per cent for the left and 48.5 per cent for the right.
The seat allocation in the Riksdag would therefore be 176 seats for the four left-wing parties and 173 for the right-wing parties.
However, an investigation into potential voter fraud in Borlänge may upend the narrow margin and shift the balance of power in Stockholm for years to come.
While the police investigation is still in its preliminary phases, Mohamed Abdukardir Ali, a Somalian migrant elected in the area for the socialist Left (V) party, has taken a leave of absence while denying any involvement in voter fraud.
According to Swedish public broadcaster SVT, Somali native Abdukardir Ali was denied Swedish citizenship in late 2024 over his substantial “debts”, but was ultimately granted a passport after the Swedish Migration Board reversed the decision in February of this year.
Swedish broadcaster TV4 reported that Ali had previously lived in the same residence with two brothers involved in a Stockholm criminal gang, one of whom was recently imprisoned for attempted murder. While Ali was living in the apartment, it was raided by police on multiple occasions, resulting in a conviction of one of the brothers for storing illegal drugs in the flat. The Somalian migrant was previously accused of a crime but has not been convicted of any offence other than a speeding ticket.
A police source told TV4: “Both brothers were highly active in the gang environment during the time that Mohamed Abdukardir Ali was living with them.”
The current investigation into alleged voter fraud reportedly focuses on the election in the municipality of Borlänge in Dalarna County. The case reportedly centres on Ali and fellow Left Party candidate Ahmed Abas Omar.
SVT reported that police operations tracked vehicles allegedly illegally transporting voters, ballots purportedly being distributed with non-Left candidates already having been crossed out, and even cash being handed out with ballots to voters.
Despite taking a leave of absence amid the investigation, Ali denied wrongdoing, saying: “It is completely, completely, wrong. I have not done it. I know the law. I have been trusted in every district in Dalarna. And it is not something that I can do, such a serious crime, against Swedish law.”
Nevertheless, the investigation could have major political ramifications, as it could potentially pave the way for a re-run of the election in Dalarna, where the left-wing bloc won six seats in the Riksdag and the right-wing bloc won five.
With just three seats separating the two blocs in the national parliament, a different outcome for the 11 seats in Dalarna could potentially shift the balance of power back to Prime Minister Kristersson’s conservative coalition. The Election Review Board, which would have to call for a re-run within three months of the original election, said on Tuesday that it is too early to comment on such a scenario.
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