Joakim Johansson: Denmark's "Pig Election" is a preview of what's coming this fall

The Danish election gave Swedish politicians a preview of what's coming this fall. Our colleague Joakim Johansson spotted four trends that stood out, which he speaks about in an article in Resumé. The trends show what lies ahead with the upcoming Swedish election:

1. When the world's on fire, domestic politics feels small
The campaign felt flat despite its usual intensity. Healthcare, tax reform – hard to get excited when geopolitics is stealing the show. Swedish parties need to ask: how do you stay relevant when the state of the world is competing for voters attention?

2. Unexpected issues goes straight to the heart
The 2026 election will go down as "svinevalget" – the pig election. Lobbyist Henrik Vindfeldt somehow pushed animal welfare to the top of the agenda. Persistent advocacy works. What will the Swedish "pig issue"?

3. The person is the politics
Party leader Alex Vanopslagh built cult status among young voters on TikTok – sharp, funny, and his actual policies almost felt secondary. He was caught having used cocaine while his own party advocates wants to harshen drug penalties. He still got more personal votes than last time.

4. TikTok is standard now
One in four candidates had a TikTok presence. Not all succeeded – but the platform is no longer optional if you want to reach young voters.

Denmark and Sweden are different and one election is not like the other. But we are more alike than we think. Swedish politicians who paid attention to what happened across the bridge will be ahead this fall.

Read the full article here.