Green Party (Sweden)

The Green Party (Miljöpartiet de Gröna, literally "The Environment Party the Green ones", and usually simply referred to in Sweden as Miljöpartiet: the "The Environment Party") is a green political party in Sweden. The party was founded in 1981 emerging out of the movement opposing nuclear power in a referendum held 1980. It won seats in the Parliament of Sweden for the first time in 1988, failed to pass the 4% cutoff in the following election in 1991, but returned again in 1994 and has held seats since, getting around 5% in every election. Currently, the party garners the most support among the young, female, urban and highly educated demographics.

The Green Party builds its ideology on the three solidarities: with animals, nature and the ecological system; with future generations; with all the world's people. The party took a stand against membership in the European Union and wanted a new referendum on the issue, though this policy was abolished in a September 2008 internal party referendum. However, the party remains predominantly EU-critical. The Greens support a phasing-out of nuclear energy in Sweden and hope to replace it with alternative, sustainable energy sources. The party further supports a general shift in taxation policy, towards high taxes on environmentally unfriendly or unsustainable products and activities, hoping to thus influence people's behavior towards the more sustainable. The Green Party was the first political party in Sweden to raise the issue of climate change.

The party is currently generally seen as more to the left than to the right on a left-right scale, at least on the national level. In several communes, however, the Greens cooperate with liberal parties, and the party does not define itself as left, nor right. Rather, they place themselves on one end of a scale between sustainability and growth. As of 2006, the party is in opposition in Sweden, and its prioritized issues are climate change, anti-discrimination and equal rights.

Party spokespersons
The party does not have a formalized leadership, instead having chosen a system with two party spokespersons (always one male and one female as a promotion of gender equality). The current spokespersons are Peter Eriksson and Maria Wetterstrand.

The party have 19 seats in the parliament and have seats in the municipal council in most municipalities.