Sweden Democrats Leader Blames Hijab Ban Proposal for Declining Support Among Young Voters

Sweden Democrats Leader Blames Hijab Ban Proposal for Declining Support Among Young Voters
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Tobias Andersson, a senior figure in Sweden’s right-wing Sweden Democrats (SD), has criticised his party’s election strategy, arguing that its proposal to ban the hijab contributed to a decline in support among young voters.

In an interview with Swedish public broadcaster SVT, Andersson said the controversy surrounding the proposal overshadowed other campaign issues and made it harder for the party to appeal to younger voters.

Andersson cited figures from Sweden’s election-day voter survey, Valu, indicating that support for the party among its youngest voters fell from 22% to 15%. A former chair of the party’s youth wing, Ungsvenskarna, he said the proposal, introduced in June, lacked sufficient clarity, explanation and supporting arguments.

Andersson also distinguished the hijab from the burqa and niqab, noting that the hijab is widely worn in Swedish society. He argued that calls to ban it created difficulties for younger voters who agreed with the party on other political issues. He added that the debate received disproportionate attention during the election campaign and that several local party representatives raised concerns about its prominence in post-election discussions.

The party figure said the decline in support could not be attributed to the hijab issue alone. He also criticised what he described as a lack of focus in the party’s campaign messaging, arguing that a more coherent strategy centred on a clearly defined set of issues would have been more effective.

The criticism comes amid changes to parliamentary committee assignments within the party. Andersson moved from chairing the Riksdag’s Committee on Industry and Trade to becoming the party’s second representative on the Committee on Education. He acknowledged that the move could be interpreted as a removal from his previous role and said he had not requested the transfer. Party leader Jimmie Åkesson rejected the suggestion that the changes were intended to sideline certain members.