After the scandal autumn - party leaders in TV debate

The SD leader Jimmie Åkesson can expect tough attacks tonight in the party leader debate because one of his wedding guests is linked to a criminal motorcycle gang. But more party leaders have been forced to crisis-manage this autumn – due to aggressive lottery sales, anti-Semitism, and a dismissed governor.

» Published: October 13 2024

After the scandal autumn - party leaders in TV debate
Photo: TT

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The party leaders clash at 8 pm in SVT's Agenda studio. The topics to be debated are taxes and benefits, anti-Semitism and Islamophobia, young criminals, and nuclear power and wind power.

However, the debate will also be marked by the political scandals that have characterized the autumn.

The latest in the series is the revelation that one of the guests at Jimmie Åkesson's wedding has a leadership position in the motorcycle gang Comanches, which the police consider a criminal network.

Åkesson has said that he was not aware of the man's gang affiliation, otherwise he would not have been invited.

Extra sensitive

It has also emerged that there are SD representatives in the country who have connections to motorcycle gangs and, for example, support Hells Angels. SD is now open to excluding such members.

The issue is particularly sensitive for SD, which has the fight against gang crime as one of its top priorities.

Another party leader who has a troublesome scandal with them to tonight's debate is S-leader Magdalena Andersson. The party's sale of lottery tickets through a telemarketing company has been stopped after reports of aggressive sales methods targeting older people.

V-leader Nooshi Dadgostar may also get sweaty when anti-Semitism and Islamophobia are debated. Several local V-politicians have spread anti-Semitic messages and expressed support for terrorist organizations in pro-Palestinian demonstrations and social media.

The party has initiated several exclusion cases, but the party leadership has still received criticism for acting too slowly and not forcefully enough.

Strike back

Perhaps Dadgostar can strike back at SD and the government parties by bringing up that SD-top Rickard Jomshof, chairman of the Justice Committee, has spread images reported to be hate speech against a group of people.

In the large number of events that have made headlines this autumn, there is also the fact that former Moderate leader Anna Kinberg Batra was fired as Governor of Stockholm after harsh criticism from the Parliamentary Ombudsman. However, according to the rules, she gets to keep her job – and salary – at the Government Offices. This practice is striking to many, and Kristersson has said that he now wants to review the rules.

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By TTEnglish edition by Sweden Herald, adapted for local and international readers

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