STOCKHOLM (AP) — Stefan Lofven, Sweden’s Social Democratic prime minister since 2014, has lost a confidence vote in parliament, making him the first Swedish government leader ever to lose such a motion. The vote was initiated Tuesday by the small Left Party, an ally of the minority government that is not in the two-party center-left coalition. A key trigger for the vote are frustrations over plans to reform Sweden’s housing market because of accelerating price increases that took place during the pandemic. On top of that comes reforms of a long-standing shortage of dwellings. It is unclear what will happen next in Sweden. Lofven said last week he would wait for the vote and then “think through what is best for Sweden.”
