Editing Ingvar Carlsson (section)

== Prime minister ==
===First premiership (1986–1991)===
{{further|Carlsson I cabinet|Carlsson II cabinet}}
[[File:President Ronald Reagan, Nancy Reagan, Ingvar Carlsson, and Ingrid Carlsson.jpg|thumb|left|Carlsson (right), with wife Ingrid (far left), First Lady [[Nancy Reagan]] (left), and President [[Ronald Reagan]] (far right), in a 1987 visit to the [[White House]].]]

Following the [[Olof Palme assassination|assassination]] of [[Olof Palme]] in 1986, Ingvar Carlsson became the new [[Prime Minister of Sweden|prime minister]] and party leader. In the weeks following the assassination, Carlsson garnered record-high approval ratings.{{sfn|Esaiasson|Granberg|1996|p=429}} [[Carlsson I cabinet|Carlsson's first government]] was formed on 12 March of that year.{{sfn|Elgán|Scrobbie|2015|p=xxix}}

Together with [[Minister of Finance (Sweden)|Minister for Finance]] [[Kjell-Olof Feldt]], the government turned a [[budget deficit]] of 90&nbsp;billion [[Swedish krona|SEK]] to a surplus of a few hundred billion [[Swedish krona|SEK]], which initially led to large investments and record low unemployment. {{Citation needed|reason=it is just a speculation|date=August 2013}} 1980s Social Democratic [[neoliberal]] measures—such as depressing and [[deregulating]] the currency to prop up Swedish exports during the economic restructuring transition, dropping corporate taxation and taxation on high income-earners, and switching from anti-unemployment policies to anti-inflationary policies—were exacerbated by international [[recession]], unchecked [[currency speculation]], and a centre-right government led by [[Carl Bildt]] (1991–1994), creating the fiscal crisis of the early 1990s.<ref>Englund, P. 1990. "Financial deregulation in Sweden." ''European Economic Review'' 34 (2–3): 385–393. Korpi TBD. Meidner, R. 1997. "The Swedish model in an era of mass unemployment." Economic and Industrial Democracy 18 (1): 87–97. Olsen, Gregg M. 1999. "Half empty or half full? The Swedish welfare state in transition." ''Canadian Review of Sociology & Anthropology'', 36 (2): 241–268.</ref>

However, Sweden's economy began to deteriorate in the early 1990s. In 1990 the [[First cabinet of Ingvar Carlsson|Carlsson cabinet]] resigned after failing to gain a majority for its economic policy agenda, but was reinstated immediately with a slightly changed agenda.

In 1987, he visited United States President [[Ronald Reagan]] at the [[White House]], becoming the first Swedish prime minister to visit a U.S. president since Erlander met [[John F. Kennedy]] in 1961.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Washington Talk: Briefing; A Swedish Visit|date=24 August 1987|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1987/08/24/us/washington-talk-briefing-a-swedish-visit.html|accessdate=16 August 2023}}</ref>

Going into the [[1988 Swedish general election|1988 general election]], Carlsson was viewed as less divisive along party lines compared to his predecessor Palme.{{sfn|Esaiasson|Granberg|1996|pp=432, 434}} In the election, held on 18 September, although the party lost 3 seats, Carlsson and the Social Democrats were able to remain in power, ending with 156 seats out of 349. The centre-right [[Moderate Party]], [[Liberals (Sweden)|Liberal Party]], and [[Centre Party (Sweden)|Centre Party]] collectively lost 19 seats, while the [[Left Party (Sweden)|Communist Party]] won 2 new seats and the [[Green Party (Sweden)|Green Party]] became the first new party to enter the [[Riksdag]] in decades.{{sfn|Scammon|1988|p=152}}

The [[1991 Swedish general election|1991 election]] saw losses for Sweden's left-wing parties. The Social Democrats lost 18 seats, the Left Party lost 5, and the Greens fell below the 4% threshold to maintain any seats in the Riksdag. The Liberals and Centrists both lost 11 seats. The Moderates gained 14 more seats, while two new right-wing parties, the [[Christian Democrats (Sweden)|Christian Democrats]] and [[New Democracy (Sweden)|New Democracy]], entered the Riksdag, with 26 and 25 seats respectively.{{sfn|Sander|1996|p=64}} Carlsson was then succeeded as prime minister by Moderate leader [[Carl Bildt]], who headed [[Carl Bildt cabinet|a new four-party right-wing cabinet]].<ref name=xES>{{harvnb|Elgán|Scrobbie|2015|p=xxx}}</ref>

The [[1994 Swedish general election|elections in 1994]] saw a turnaround for the Social Democrats. Although the Moderates maintained their 80 seats and saw a slight percentage increase, all of the other right-wing coalition partners lost seats, and New Democracy fell below the 4% threshold. The Social Democrats won 23 new seats and saw their percentage increase to 45%.{{sfn|Sander|1996|p=66}} As a result, the Social Democrats returned to power, with Carlsson again becoming prime minister and [[Carlsson III cabinet|a new government]].<ref name=xES/>

===Second premiership (1994–1996)===
{{further|Carlsson III cabinet}}
[[File:Madrid European Council (1995).jpg|thumb|right|A 1995 meeting of the [[European Council]] in Madrid. Carlsson is the third from the right in the second row, behind French President [[Jacques Chirac]].]]

The Social Democrats lost the [[Elections in Sweden|elections]] in 1991, but Carlsson returned to power after the elections in 1994. When the Social Democrats returned to power in 1994, they responded to the fiscal crisis<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20070627060024/http://hdr.undp.org/docs/publications/ocational_papers/oc26c.htm (archive date: 27 June 2007) Between 1990 and 1994, per capita income declined by approximately 10%] hdr.undp (original URL: [http://hdr.undp.org/docs/publications/ocational_papers/oc26c.htm]) (access date: 5 July 2007) (dead URL)</ref> by stabilizing the currency—and by reducing the [[welfare state]] and [[privatizing]] public services and goods, as governments did in many countries influenced by [[Milton Friedman]], the Chicago Schools of political and economic thought, and the [[neoliberal]] movement.
As Prime Minister, he also carried out a comprehensive reform of the tax system.

After three years in opposition and an election victory in the 1994 elections, Carlsson formed a new government. This government realigned its focus on cleaning up Swedish Government finances, and the task was assigned to the newly appointed [[Minister of Finance (Sweden)|Minister of Finance]] [[Göran Persson]]. The ensuing governing period was difficult and it was strongly criticized by trade unions and party members for government service cuts and tax increases that were instituted. On 19 December 1994, Carlsson announced the decision not to recover the wreck of the [[MS Estonia]], or even the bodies of the victims of the disaster.

Bildt's government had significantly cut taxes, although they were still considered high. In his second government, Carlsson reduced some welfare benefits and halved the value-added food tax. However, he also raised the top marginal income tax rates on the wealthiest, and tax revenue increased as the decade progressed.<ref>{{cite journal|title=The Resilient Swedish Model|date=Winter 2003|journal=[[The Wilson Quarterly]]|volume=27|issue=1|page=108|jstor=45270996}}</ref>

Carlsson pushed for Sweden to join the [[European Union]], seeing it as necessary for Sweden to strengthen its economy, although other members of his party were sceptical of the idea.<ref>{{harvnb|Elgán|Scrobbie|2015|p=90}}</ref> After four years of negotiations and a large campaign credited with increasing EU support, [[1994 Swedish European Union membership referendum|a national referendum was held]] on 13 October 1994, with 83% voter turnout (the highest for a Swedish referendum up to that point), and 52.3% voting to join.<ref name=":SwedenEU20">{{Cite web|title=Twenty years since Sweden voted to join the EU – what's changed?|date=13 November 2014|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2014/nov/13/twenty-years-since-sweden-voted-to-join-the-eu-whats-changed|accessdate=20 August 2023}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Swedes Vote In Referendum To Join The European Union|date=14 November 1994|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/11/14/world/swedes-vote-in-referendum-to-join-the-european-union.html|accessdate=20 August 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.scb.se/Pages/TableAndChart____223857.aspx|title=Folkomröstningar 1922–2003|date=21 December 2007|publisher=[[Statistics Sweden]]|language=sv|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120402200018/http://www.scb.se/Pages/TableAndChart____223857.aspx |archivedate=2 April 2012|url-status=dead|accessdate=8 October 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.val.se/det_svenska_valsystemet/folkomrostningar/nationella/index.html|title=Nationella folkomröstningar|publisher=[[Election Authority (Sweden)|Swedish Election Authority]]|language=sv|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20100817192957/http://www.val.se/det_svenska_valsystemet/folkomrostningar/nationella/index.html |archivedate=17 August 2010|url-status=dead|accessdate=8 October 2024}}</ref>{{sfn|Sander|1996|p=49}} Sweden joined in January 1995 alongside [[Austria]] and [[Finland]].<ref name=":SwedenEU20"/> After joining, Carlsson was critical of the lack of gender diversity in EU institutions, stating in a ministerial meeting that "we don't do it this way in Sweden".{{sfn|Ingebritsen|2002|p=257}}

[[1995 European Parliament election in Sweden|Sweden held an election]] for the [[European Parliament]] in September 1995. The pro-European Social Democrats received only 28% of the vote, while the [[Euroscepticism|Eurosceptic]] [[Left Party (Sweden)|Left Party]] and [[Green Party (Sweden)|Green Party]] together won 30%. The Social Democrats' poor showing was seen as a major blow to Carlsson.{{sfn|Sander|1996|p=50}}

In August 1995, Ingvar Carlsson announced that he would resign as party leader and Swedish Prime Minister. His successor was long considered to be the then Minister of Equality and Deputy Prime Minister [[Mona Sahlin]]. However, due to the so-called [[Toblerone]] Affair, she took back her candidacy and also later resigned from the government. On 5 December 1995, the nominating committee proposed the Minister for Finance, Göran Persson, as the new party leader candidate. He was elected on 15 March 1996 at the Social Democratic Party Congress as party leader and on 22 March 1996 he was elected Prime Minister.