Why one in four voters stayed home in parts of rural Sweden

Joakim Ekholm stayed home on election day in Vansbro. He said politicians argue too much and that it had become difficult to understand what they actually mean.

Preliminary figures put turnout in Vansbro at 72.5%, SVT reported, compared with 84.9% in Falun. That means more than one in four eligible voters in Vansbro did not cast a ballot.

Vansbro and Älvdalen both lost almost 10 percentage points from their previous levels above 80%, according to Sveriges Radio. A local politician in Älvdalen said the largest falls appeared in outlying villages.

The pattern contrasts with several low-turnout urban districts where participation rose sharply. One resident's explanation cannot account for an entire municipality, but the figures leave rural leaders with a practical question: why did the election debate fail to reach so many people outside the main towns?

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