HELSINKI, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- Andreas Norlen of the Moderate Party was re-elected speaker of parliament on Monday as the newly elected Riksdag, Sweden's parliament, convened for the first time following this month's general elections.
Norlen won 200 votes in a secret ballot, defeating the Social Democratic Party's candidate Johanna Haraldsson, who received 146 votes.
The Moderate Party had nominated Norlen for another term, with the Sweden Democrats, the Christian Democrats and the Liberal Party backing his candidacy. The Left Party also announced ahead of the vote that it would support Norlen, citing his experience as speaker and in overseeing government-formation talks.
The Social Democratic Party requested a secret ballot and nominated Haraldsson, a lawmaker from southern Sweden's Jonkoping County, as their candidate.
Norlen, who has served as speaker since 2018, will now continue to oversee the process of forming Sweden's next government.
Earlier on Monday, the Social Democratic Party leader and former Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson announced that she would return the exploratory mandate she received from Norlen on Sept. 18 to explore the possibility of forming a new government.
Andersson said the Left Party's decision to support Norlen had created what she described as a new parliamentary constellation and that she currently saw no conditions for forming a government herself.
The Left Party rejected the suggestion that its support for Norlen amounted to a political alliance with the Moderate Party, saying the decision was based on his experience as speaker.
Sweden held its parliamentary election on Sept. 13. The Social Democratic Party, Left Party, Green Party and Centre Party won a combined 176 seats in the 349-seat parliament, while the Moderate Party, Sweden Democrats, Christian Democrats and the Liberal Party secured 173 seats.
Outgoing Prime Minister and Moderate Party leader Ulf Kristersson tendered his resignation following the election. Under Sweden's constitutional system, the speaker consults the parties and proposes a candidate for prime minister. ■