Sweden's Parliament Speaker Andreas Norlen gave Swedish Moderate Party leader and outgoing Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson until Nov. 10 to complete consultations and report on the prospects for forming a government. The process can be concluded earlier or extended at the request of either Kristersson or the speaker.
HELSINKI, Nov. 3 (Xinhua) -- Swedish Moderate Party leader and outgoing Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson was formally tasked on Tuesday with exploring the possibility of forming a new government after parliament rejected another prime ministerial candidate earlier in the day.
Parliament Speaker Andreas Norlen gave Kristersson until Nov. 10 to complete consultations and report on the prospects for forming a government. The process can be concluded earlier or extended at the request of either Kristersson or the speaker.
Speaking at a press conference after accepting the assignment, Kristersson said he would make a serious effort to explore the possibility of forming a new government, while acknowledging the difficulties ahead.
He said he would continue talks with various political parties in "relative quiet" to allow for more candid and constructive discussions, describing the task as "probably very difficult, but perhaps not entirely impossible."
Earlier Tuesday, the Swedish parliament rejected Centre Party leader Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist as the country's new prime minister, with 324 lawmakers voting against her nomination and only 25 in favor.
The vote marked the second failed attempt to elect a new prime minister since Sweden's general election on Sept. 13. Parliament had rejected Social Democratic leader Magdalena Andersson's nomination on Oct. 15.
In September's election, the governing bloc comprising Kristersson's Moderate Party, the Christian Democrats, the Liberal Party and the Sweden Democrats lost its parliamentary majority. Kristersson submitted his resignation on Sept. 17, but his government has remained in office in a caretaker capacity pending the formation of a new government.■
