Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Quick facts for kids Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden
Flag of Sweden
Coat of arms of Sweden
Incumbent Ebba Busch since 18 October 2022
Appointer	Prime Minister
Term length	No fixed term
Inaugural holder	Gunnar Sträng
Formation	1 January 1975; 50 years ago (1975-01-01)
Website	Government of Sweden

The Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden (called Ställföreträdande statsminister in Swedish) is like the second-in-command to the Prime Minister. Their main job is to step in and lead the government if the Prime Minister can't do their job for some reason. The person holding this important role right now is Ebba Busch.

Sweden's rules for how the country is run, called the Swedish constitution, say that the Prime Minister can choose one of their ministers to be the Deputy Prime Minister. If no one is officially chosen, or if the chosen deputy can't do the job, then the minister who has been in the government the longest takes over. If there's a tie, the oldest minister gets the role.

It's important to know that a Deputy Prime Minister only fills in temporarily. If the Prime Minister resigns, the whole government steps down. If the Prime Minister passes away, the Speaker of the Swedish Parliament (the Riksdag) must dismiss the government.

History of the Role
Legal Rules for the Job
Who Has Held the Office?
Honorary Deputy Prime Ministers
See also

History of the Role

How the Job Started

A long time ago, before 1974, if the Prime Minister couldn't work, the Minister for Foreign Affairs would step in. This was an old rule from 1809.

But in 1974, new rules were made for the government. Then, in 1976, Per Ahlmark became the very first person to officially hold the title of Deputy Prime Minister. This made the role a formal position.

A Sad Event: The Palme Assassination

In 1986, something very sad happened. The Prime Minister, Olof Palme, was assassinated. His Deputy Prime Minister, Ingvar Carlsson, immediately stepped in as acting Prime Minister.

He led the country for a short time, from March 1st to March 12th. This was the only time in Sweden's history that a Deputy Prime Minister had to take over because the Prime Minister died. After this, Carlsson was asked to form a new government, and he became the new Prime Minister.

Deputy Prime Ministers in Coalition Governments

Sometimes, different political parties team up to form a government. This is called a "coalition government." In these governments, the Deputy Prime Minister is often the leader of the second-largest party in the coalition.

For example, in many governments, the Deputy Prime Minister was from the Liberal Party or the Green Party. This shows how different parties share power and leadership. The Deputy Prime Minister usually also has another job as a minister in the government.

In 2015, there was some talk about the Deputy Prime Minister's role. The Prime Minister, Stefan Löfven, was briefly ill. Even though Åsa Romson was called "Vice Prime Minister," the actual person who would step in was the most senior minister, Margot Wallström. This showed that sometimes the "Vice Prime Minister" title was more honorary than a real stand-in role.

Deputy Prime Ministers in One-Party Governments

When one party forms the government by itself, the Deputy Prime Minister's role can be a bit different. They are often experienced politicians who help coordinate the government's work.

They might also be in charge of specific policy areas that don't need a full-time minister. For example, Bo Ringholm was the Minister of Sport while also being Deputy Prime Minister.

Legal Rules for the Job

According to Sweden's Instrument of Government (a key part of its constitution), the Prime Minister can choose a deputy. This deputy takes over if the Prime Minister cannot do their job.

If no deputy is chosen, or if the chosen deputy can't act, then the minister who has served the longest in the government steps in. If several ministers have served for the same amount of time, the oldest one gets the role.

Who Has Held the Office?

Here is a list of people who have served as Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden. Some were officially appointed, while others stepped in temporarily due to seniority.

№		Position	Took office	Left office	Duration	Party	Prime Minister
–	Gunnar Sträng (1906–1992) Acting	Minister for Finance	1 January 1975	8 October 1976	1 year, 281 days	Social Democrat	Olof Palme (S/SAP)
1	Per Ahlmark (1939–2018)	Minister for Employment	8 October 1976	7 March 1978	1 year, 150 days	Liberal	Thorbjörn Fälldin (C)
2	Ola Ullsten (1931–2018)	Minister for Employment, Minister for International Development Cooperation	7 March 1978	18 October 1978	225 days	Liberal	Thorbjörn Fälldin (C)
–	Sven Romanus (1906–2005) Acting	Minister for Justice	18 October 1978	12 October 1979	359 days	Independent	Ola Ullsten (L)
–	Ingemar Mundebo (1930–2018) Acting	Minister for Justice	12 October 1979	1 August 1980	294 days	Liberal	Thorbjörn Fälldin (C)
(2)	Ola Ullsten (1931–2018)	Minister for Foreign Affairs	1 August 1980	8 October 1982	2 years, 68 days	Liberal	Thorbjörn Fälldin (C)
3	Ingvar Carlsson (born 1934)	Minister for the Environment	8 October 1982	28 February 1986	3 years, 143 days	Social Democrat	Olof Palme (S/SAP)
–	Svante Lundkvist (1919–1991) Acting	Minister for Agriculture	28 February 1986	9 October 1986	223 days	Social Democrat	Ingvar Carlsson (S/SAP)
–	Kjell-Olof Feldt (1931–2025) Acting	Minister for Finance	9 October 1986	16 February 1990	3 years, 130 days	Social Democrat	Ingvar Carlsson (S/SAP)
–	Lena Hjelm-Wallén (born 1943) Acting	Minister for International Development Cooperation	16 February 1990	27 February 1990	11 days	Social Democrat	Ingvar Carlsson (S/SAP)
4	Odd Engström (1941–1998)	–	27 February 1990	4 October 1991	1 year, 219 days	Social Democrat	Ingvar Carlsson (S/SAP)
5	Bengt Westerberg (born 1943)	Minister for Health and Social Affairs	4 October 1991	7 October 1994	3 years, 3 days	Liberal	Carl Bildt (M)
6	Mona Sahlin (born 1957)	Minister for Gender Equality	7 October 1994	16 November 1995	1 year, 40 days	Social Democrat	Ingvar Carlsson (S/SAP)
7	Lena Hjelm-Wallén (born 1943)	Minister for Foreign Affairs (1994–1998)	16 November 1995	21 October 2002	6 years, 339 days	Social Democrat	Ingvar Carlsson (S/SAP) (1995 – 1996) Göran Persson (S/SAP) (1996 – 2002)
8	Margareta Winberg (born 1943)	Minister for Gender Equality	21 October 2002	31 October 2003	1 year, 10 days	Social Democrat	Göran Persson (S/SAP)
–	Marita Ulvskog (born 1951) Acting	Minister for Culture and Sports	31 October 2003	1 June 2004	214 days	Social Democrat	Göran Persson (S/SAP)
9	Lars Engqvist (born 1945)	Minister for Health and Social Affairs	1 June 2004	1 October 2004	122 days	Social Democrat	Göran Persson (S/SAP)
–	Laila Freivalds (born 1942) Acting	Minister for Foreign Affairs	1 October 2004	1 November 2004	31 days	Social Democrat	Göran Persson (S/SAP)
10	Bo Ringholm (born 1942)	Minister for European Union Affairs	1 November 2004	6 October 2006	1 year, 339 days	Social Democrat	Göran Persson (S/SAP)
11	Maud Olofsson (born 1955)	Minister for Enterprise and Energy	6 October 2006	5 October 2010	3 years, 364 days	Centre	Fredrik Reinfeldt (M)
12	Jan Björklund (born 1962)	Minister for Education	5 October 2010	3 October 2014	3 years, 363 days	Liberal	Fredrik Reinfeldt (M)
–	Margot Wallström (born 1954) Acting	Minister for Foreign Affairs	3 October 2014	10 September 2019	4 years, 342 days	Social Democrat	Stefan Löfven (S/SAP)
–	Morgan Johansson (born 1970) Acting	Minister for Justice (2014–2022) Minister for Migration (2019–2021) Minister of the Interior (2021–2022)	10 September 2019	18 October 2022	3 years, 38 days	Social Democrat	Stefan Löfven (S/SAP) (2019 – 2021) Magdalena Andersson (S/SAP) (2021 – 2022)
13	Ebba Busch (born 1987)	Minister for Energy, Business, Industry and Innovation	18 October 2022	Incumbent	2 years, 245 days	Christian Democrat	Ulf Kristersson (M)

Honorary Deputy Prime Ministers

Sometimes, a minister might be given the special title of "deputy prime minister" even if they aren't the person who would actually take over for the Prime Minister. This is an honorary title.

For example, when Stefan Löfven was Prime Minister, he gave this honorary title to a leader from the Green Party. The Green Party was a smaller partner in his government. This system stopped when Magdalena Andersson became Prime Minister.

	Position	Took office	Left office	Duration	Party	Prime Minister
Åsa Romson (born 1972)	Minister for the Environment	3 October 2014	25 May 2016	1 year, 235 days	Green	Stefan Löfven (S/SAP)
Isabella Lövin (born 1963)	Minister for International Development Cooperation (2016–2019) Minister for the Climate (2016–2021) Minister for the Environment (2019–2021)	25 May 2016	5 February 2021	4 years, 256 days	Green	Stefan Löfven (S/SAP)
Per Bolund (born 1971)	Minister for the Environment Minister for the Climate	5 February 2021	30 November 2021	298 days	Green	Stefan Löfven (S/SAP)