Sweden's left-wing opposition leads right-wing bloc in first exit poll

Sweden's left-wing opposition is leading the country's governing right-wing bloc by 4.5 percentage points, according to the first exit poll released Sunday by public broadcaster SVT.

The Social Democrats, Green Party, Left Party and Center Party secured a combined 51.3% in SVT's polling station survey, compared with 46.8% for the Moderate Party, Christian Democrats, Liberals and Sweden Democrats.

The Social Democrats remain the largest party in the exit poll, receiving 28.4%, although this represents a decline from the 30.3% they won in the 2022 parliamentary election.

The Moderates are projected to finish second with 18.1%, narrowly ahead of the Sweden Democrats, who received 17.2%.

In 2022, the Sweden Democrats won 20.5%, while the Moderates received 19.1%.

The Left Party is projected to become Sweden's fourth-largest party with 8%, up from 6.8% in the 2022 election.

The Center Party also appears to have gained ground, reaching 7.5%, compared with 6.7% in 2022.

The Christian Democrats are projected to receive 6.1%, up from 5.3% four years ago.

The Liberals, meanwhile, stand at 5.4%, comfortably above Sweden's 4% parliamentary threshold.

The exit poll is not the final election result, and the balance between the blocs could change as votes are counted.