Jämlikhet för en ny tid - Socialdemokraternas syn på jämlikhet: 2001– 2019

Abstract

Equality can be said to be one of the most central concepts of the Swedish Social Democratic Party’s ideology. The party has a long history of socialistic ideological heritage but has at the same time been influenced by liberalism to a large degree, especially from the 1980s and onwards. One of the most central lines of conflict between the two ideologies goes between a liberal form of equality as equal opportunities on the one hand, and a socialistic form of equality as equal outcomes on the other. This study aims to describe and clarify how the modern leaders of the Swedish Social Democratic Party, from Göran Persson to Stefan Löfven, has dealt with the issue and the inherent conflict between the two concepts of equality. We can in this question see how a larger ideological conflict within the party has taken place, which is based on the conflict between economic concerns against social concerns, between idealism and pragmatism, as well as between being a party that aims to shape the popular opinion on the one hand or following it on the other. The study finds evidence that an ideological shift occurred towards a more liberal form of equality first with the accession of Mona Sahlin as party leader, and then in renewed force with the accession of Stefan Löfven as party leader, even if a clear continuity can be seen with their precursor Göran Persson’s ideological stance. The study concludes that by arguing for a form of equality that is compensative in nature, Stefan Löfven tried to bridge the gap between the party’s socialistic ideals and its more pragmatic liberal policies, while Mona Sahlin rather tried to argue for both a socialistic form of equality as well as a liberal one.