The Leadership Role No One Wants

Stressed? You could be the nominating committee for the Liberals.

It's June, and summer is just around the corner. There's much to do—school graduations, student celebrations, social gatherings in the garden before the lilacs have fully bloomed. Work projects need to be completed, alongside the always complicated vacation planning.

Does this sound familiar?

Think positively—you could also be on the nominating committee for the Liberals.

Early next week, Lars Persson Skandevall and his committee are set to present the next leader of Sweden's most vulnerable small party. At least, that's the plan, and there's little room for reconsideration.

Just a week later, on the morning of June 24, Johan Pehrson's successor will be chosen at an extraordinary national meeting in Visby. Shortly thereafter, the fortunate (?) individual will step onto the stage to meet the Swedish public—it's the Liberals' day at Almedalen.

It might have seemed like a bright idea during the planning stage, but that was then.

Who wants to risk being responsible for such a historic fiasco?

The favorite, Climate Minister Romina Pourmokhtari, has reportedly declined the role of party leader, according to Expressen's sources. She is joined by the second favorite, Education Minister Lotta Edholm, according to other reports.

Former crown prince Erik Ullenhag's name has been suggested as a possible alternative, but he too is reportedly not very interested.

All the naysayers have their private and professional reasons, but looming over the entire process is the increasingly clear threat that the Liberals might actually be ousted from parliament next year. Who wants to risk being responsible for such a historic fiasco?

One person, it is said—Labor Minister Mats Persson is eager to become party leader.

However, support for Persson is reportedly limited, according to informants—so limited that the support for Mats Persson's candidacy is practically just Mats Persson himself.

The main strategy now is said to be persuading Romina Pourmokhtari to reconsider. Optimists point to the Center Party, where Anna-Karin Hatt initially declined and shortly thereafter changed her mind, becoming a success.

However, the conditions are worse here. The Center Party could offer North Korean-style unity and a bizarre monthly salary of 223,000 kronor. Such an offer is unlikely to be matched by the perpetually quarrelsome and cash-strapped Liberals.

In other words, the situation is very exciting.

Will the Liberals become the first parliamentary party to simply fail to appoint a leader, resulting in a lottery within the parliamentary group to decide who will speak and debate in the upcoming election campaign?

Will the Moderates be forced to step in as a guardian and take over operations, or will Anna-Karin Hatt buy the entire estate after the political bankruptcy?

Or will someone—not Mats Persson—actually take pity on the legacy of Bertil Ohlin and Jan Björklund?

Rarely has an Almedalen week seemed so exciting in advance.

Viktor Barth-Kron is a political commentator at Expressen. This is a text from his newsletter—feel free to subscribe here!

Also, listen to the latest episode of "Viktor möter," with Minister of Aid Benjamin Dousa, here in the player.