Sweden’s centre-left opposition coalition was projected to lead the parliamentary election with 176 of 349 seats, compared with 173 for the right-wing governing bloc, according to an early update from the Swedish Election Authority based on 4,853 of 6,312 districts. An SVT exit poll (survey conducted as voters leave polling stations) put the opposition on 51.3% of the vote against 46.8% for the governing bloc, while a separate TV4 election-day poll also showed the centre-left ahead. Social Democratic Party leader Magdalena Andersson told supporters that the opposition was leading and that Sweden could get a new government if the results held. Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said he would contact other party leaders and that it remained open who would govern in the coming years. Exit polls have not always been accurate in Sweden; in 2022, a poll predicted an Andersson-led victory before Kristersson’s right-wing coalition won. The campaign’s earlier 10-percentage-point opposition lead narrowed to two or three points in the final weeks. A confirmed opposition win would offer relief to left-leaning parties in Europe after the Alternative for Germany won 44% in a key state election, while a right-wing victory could bring the Sweden Democrats into government for the first time. The Sweden Democrats won 20.5% in 2022 and currently support Kristersson’s minority government from outside it. Kristersson said in April that his Moderates would consider giving the party cabinet positions if the right secured a majority, but a confirmed centre-left lead would make that less likely.