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Sweden's government
瑞典政府
That was quick
生命短暂
Stefan Lofven's fall shows the strength of the far-right Sweden Democrats
瑞典首相斯特凡·勒文下台，彰显瑞典“极右翼”民主党实力
IT WAS supposed to be the Swedish Social Democrats' triumphant return. But two months after forming a minority coalition government with the Greens, Stefan Lofven, the Social Democratic leader, has been forced to step down as prime minister. The four-party centre-right opposition alliance enlisted the support of the far-right, anti-immigrant Sweden Democrats to vote down his budget, pushing through a budget of its own instead. Mr Lofven might have let the other parties try to form a new government. But instead he plans to call an “extra” election on March 22nd.
瑞典社会民主党与绿党组建了少数党联合政府，这本应是社会民主党的胜利回归，但两个月之后，该党主席、瑞典首相斯特凡·勒文被迫下台。由于四党“中右翼”反对派联盟和反移民的瑞典“极右翼”民主党的联合反对，勒文政府提交的财政预算案未能通过，而该反对派联盟提交的预算案却得以通过。勒文本可以给予其他党派组建新政府的机会，但他却计划于明年的3月22号再次参加大选。
Such high political drama is rare inSweden, where advance negotiations before parliamentary votes normally mean the budget passes with little fuss. The only previous special election was in 1958. Social Democratic-led governments, in particular, have usually sat out their four-year terms in an orderly fashion.
这样的高层政治闹剧在瑞典难得一见，正常情况下，在议会选举前进行谈判意味着财政预算案会顺利通过。瑞典首次举行打破常规的选举是在1958年。就社会民主党而言，该党通常会以有序的状态执政，顺利完成四年的任期。
But Sweden has never before had to contend with a far-right party that enjoys as much support as the Sweden Democrats. The party is the third-largest in parliament. Without its backing, neither the centre-right alliance nor a coalition of the Social Democrats, Greens and the small Left party commands a majority. Worse, a new election could see the Sweden Democrats grow stronger, although the absence on sick leave of their leader, Jimmie Akesson, may count against them. The Sweden Democrats say they blocked the government's budget because it failed to meet their goal of cutting immigration by some 90%. They also accused Mr Lofven of shutting them out of discussions on the budget and other issues.
但瑞典历史上从未面临过需要与和瑞典民主党有着同样多支持者的“极右翼”党派对抗的境况。该党是议会第三大党。没有它的支持，无论是“中右翼”联盟，还是社会民主党、绿党和小型的“左翼”党派组建的联合政府，都不会形成多数党。雪上加霜的是，尽管瑞典民主党主席吉米·阿克森的病假缺席可能为他们带来不利，但在新一轮的选举中该党仍会增强实力。同时，谴责勒文不准许他们参与预算案及其他问题讨论的行为。
Mr. Lofven fired back, calling the Sweden Democrats' actions “utterly irresponsible”. And he promised that, should he be asked to form a new government, he will continue to freeze them out. The centre-right alliance, he claimed, would let them have a voice. Before the budget vote, Mr Lofven forlornly appealed to the alliance parties to avoid a crisis and reject support for their budget plans from the Sweden Democrats. But after a late-night meeting on December 2nd, they refused to negotiate over a new budget.
勒文对此作出回击，称瑞典民主党的行为是“完全不负责任的”行为。他决意表示，如果他还有机会组建新政府，会继续无视他们。他声称，“中右翼”联盟会听取他们的意见。在财政预算案投票之前，勒文无力地呼吁各联盟党派避免分歧，放弃支持瑞典民主党提交的财政预算案。但12月02号深夜召开的会议之后，同盟党派拒绝商议新的财政预算案。
Mr Lofven may go down as the shortest-lived elected prime minister in Swedish history, and his Social Democrats, already at an all-time low with the electorate, have lost more voter confidence. The larger questions are how much more the Sweden Democrats will transform a traditionally compromise-oriented political landscape and what happens if the March ballot produces a similar hung parliament. Mr Lofven seemed flummoxed by the far-right party's support for the alternative budget and by the alliance's unwillingness to negotiate, even though both had been well trailed. As a former trade unionist without political experience, he is used to consensus, not crisis.
勒文下台，成为瑞典史上在位时间最短的首相，同时，他领导的社会民主党所得票数达到历史最低水平，这让更多的选民失去信心。更大的问题在于瑞典民主党会在多大程度上改变以折中为传统解决方式的政治形势，如果三月份的投票选举产生一个相似的少数派议会，又将如何处理。虽然勒文政府已经使出浑身解数进行拖延，但“极右翼”党派仍然支持瑞典民主党的预算案，且“中右翼”联盟不愿进行协商，这让勒文显得狼狈不堪。他作为一个没有执政经验的前工会会员，习惯于达成一致，而不是产生分歧。
But if Mr Lofven was surprised by the outcome,Sweden's election authority was not. Even as the politicians were arguing, it pragmatically ordered six million envelopes for paper ballots and began preparing for a new election. Swedish taxpayers will pay about 250m krona ($33m) for the privilege of going to the polls again.
如果说，这样的结果对勒文来说是意料之外，对瑞典的选举委员会来说，却是意料之中。就在各党派政治家争辩不休之时，它从实际出发，预定了600万份选票，为新一轮大选做好准备。瑞典纳税人将再次为选民投票支付2.5亿克朗（约合美元3300万）。译者：石海霞 校对：王颖
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