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Stefan Löfven
Kjell Stefan Löfven ([ˈstěːfan lœˈveːn] ⓘ; officially Löfvén; born 21 July 1957) is a Swedish politician who has served as the President of European Socialists since October 2022. He previously served as Prime Minister of Sweden from October 2014 to November 2021 and leader of the Social Democratic Party from 2012 to 2021.
After leaving school and completing military service in the Swedish Air Force, Löfven trained as a welder and began employment as a metalworker, becoming active within the Swedish Metalworkers' Union (SMU) and later elected as ombudsman; following its merger with the Swedish Industrial Union (SIU) to form IF Metall, he was elected as its first president in January 2006. In January 2012, he was unanimously elected leader of the Social Democratic Party by its executive board following the resignation of Håkan Juholt, becoming the Leader of the Opposition despite not holding a seat in the Riksdag at the time.
Löfven led the Social Democrats into the 2014 election. Despite initial opinion poll leads, the party only gained a single seat; due to the poor performance of the governing Moderate Party which lost 23 seats, Löfven was able to form a minority coalition government with the Green Party. He was appointed prime minister of Sweden on 3 October 2014. He went on to secure a second term in the aftermath of the inconclusive 2018 election, which saw both main parties suffer losses; after a months-long impasse that set a new record for government formation, Löfven was able to secure abstentions from MPs belonging to the Centre Party, the Left Party and the Liberals to be re-elected by the Riksdag in January 2019. On 21 June 2021, Löfven lost a confidence motion in the Riksdag after the Left Party withdrew their support, triggering a brief crisis; it was resolved on 5 July when Löfven announced that talks to reform the government had been successful, and two days later the Riksdag once again confirmed Löfven as prime minister in a vote. Dubbed a "political escape artist" and the "Harry Houdini of European politics", Löfven was able to successfully remain as prime minister at the helm of historically weak coalition governments in the turbulent Swedish political landscape from 2014.
On 22 August 2021, Löfven announced that he would retire as leader of the Social Democrats at the November party congress, and would then resign as prime minister upon the election of his successor. In September 2021, it was confirmed that Finance Minister Magdalena Andersson would be the only candidate at the congress to replace Löfven. Andersson was elected party leader on 4 November. Löfven officially resigned as prime minister on 10 November 2021, though he continued to lead a caretaker government until his successor took office on 30 November 2021.
Löfven was born 21 July 1957 in Aspudden, Stockholm, and his father died before he was born. He was placed in an orphanage before being looked after by a foster family from Sunnersta, Sollefteå, where he grew up. According to the agreement with this family, his birth mother would regain custody of him when she was able to; however, this did not happen.
His mother's family spells the name Löfven without any accent mark over the e, and pronounces it accordingly, just like the Swedish word for leaves (or the German word Löwen for lions). But when being placed in care of the foster family authorities assumed the name to be Löfvén, and added the accent mark. When he met his mother and brother at almost adulthood and learned his own last name for real, he quit spelling the name with the accent mark, and considered the family's regular pronunciation, but kept on pronouncing as before, and he never applied to have the spelling corrected in the civil registry.
His foster father Ture Melander (1927–2002) was a lumberjack and later a factory worker, while his foster mother, Iris Melander (née Söderlund, 1929–2020), worked as an in-home caregiver. He studied at Sollefteå High School before starting a 48-week welding course at Arbetsmarknadsutbildningen (AMU, Unemployment Career Training) in Kramfors, and it is unclear whether he completed the course. Löfven later studied social work at Umeå University, but dropped out after a year and a half.
After completing his compulsory military service (as a private Munitions Systems specialist conscript) in the Swedish Air Force at the Jämtland Wing (F 4) airbase 1976–77, Löfven began his career in 1978 as a welder at Hägglund & Söner in Örnsköldsvik. Two years later, he was chosen as the group's union representative, and went on to hold a succession of union posts. In 1995, he started as an employed ombudsman in the Swedish Metalworkers' Union, working in the areas of contract negotiations and international affairs. In 2001, he was elected vice-chairman of the Metalworkers' Union; in November 2005 was elected as the first chairman of the newly formed trade union IF Metall.
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Stefan Löfven
Kjell Stefan Löfven ([ˈstěːfan lœˈveːn] ⓘ; officially Löfvén; born 21 July 1957) is a Swedish politician who has served as the President of European Socialists since October 2022. He previously served as Prime Minister of Sweden from October 2014 to November 2021 and leader of the Social Democratic Party from 2012 to 2021.
After leaving school and completing military service in the Swedish Air Force, Löfven trained as a welder and began employment as a metalworker, becoming active within the Swedish Metalworkers' Union (SMU) and later elected as ombudsman; following its merger with the Swedish Industrial Union (SIU) to form IF Metall, he was elected as its first president in January 2006. In January 2012, he was unanimously elected leader of the Social Democratic Party by its executive board following the resignation of Håkan Juholt, becoming the Leader of the Opposition despite not holding a seat in the Riksdag at the time.
Löfven led the Social Democrats into the 2014 election. Despite initial opinion poll leads, the party only gained a single seat; due to the poor performance of the governing Moderate Party which lost 23 seats, Löfven was able to form a minority coalition government with the Green Party. He was appointed prime minister of Sweden on 3 October 2014. He went on to secure a second term in the aftermath of the inconclusive 2018 election, which saw both main parties suffer losses; after a months-long impasse that set a new record for government formation, Löfven was able to secure abstentions from MPs belonging to the Centre Party, the Left Party and the Liberals to be re-elected by the Riksdag in January 2019. On 21 June 2021, Löfven lost a confidence motion in the Riksdag after the Left Party withdrew their support, triggering a brief crisis; it was resolved on 5 July when Löfven announced that talks to reform the government had been successful, and two days later the Riksdag once again confirmed Löfven as prime minister in a vote. Dubbed a "political escape artist" and the "Harry Houdini of European politics", Löfven was able to successfully remain as prime minister at the helm of historically weak coalition governments in the turbulent Swedish political landscape from 2014.
On 22 August 2021, Löfven announced that he would retire as leader of the Social Democrats at the November party congress, and would then resign as prime minister upon the election of his successor. In September 2021, it was confirmed that Finance Minister Magdalena Andersson would be the only candidate at the congress to replace Löfven. Andersson was elected party leader on 4 November. Löfven officially resigned as prime minister on 10 November 2021, though he continued to lead a caretaker government until his successor took office on 30 November 2021.
Löfven was born 21 July 1957 in Aspudden, Stockholm, and his father died before he was born. He was placed in an orphanage before being looked after by a foster family from Sunnersta, Sollefteå, where he grew up. According to the agreement with this family, his birth mother would regain custody of him when she was able to; however, this did not happen.
His mother's family spells the name Löfven without any accent mark over the e, and pronounces it accordingly, just like the Swedish word for leaves (or the German word Löwen for lions). But when being placed in care of the foster family authorities assumed the name to be Löfvén, and added the accent mark. When he met his mother and brother at almost adulthood and learned his own last name for real, he quit spelling the name with the accent mark, and considered the family's regular pronunciation, but kept on pronouncing as before, and he never applied to have the spelling corrected in the civil registry.
His foster father Ture Melander (1927–2002) was a lumberjack and later a factory worker, while his foster mother, Iris Melander (née Söderlund, 1929–2020), worked as an in-home caregiver. He studied at Sollefteå High School before starting a 48-week welding course at Arbetsmarknadsutbildningen (AMU, Unemployment Career Training) in Kramfors, and it is unclear whether he completed the course. Löfven later studied social work at Umeå University, but dropped out after a year and a half.
After completing his compulsory military service (as a private Munitions Systems specialist conscript) in the Swedish Air Force at the Jämtland Wing (F 4) airbase 1976–77, Löfven began his career in 1978 as a welder at Hägglund & Söner in Örnsköldsvik. Two years later, he was chosen as the group's union representative, and went on to hold a succession of union posts. In 1995, he started as an employed ombudsman in the Swedish Metalworkers' Union, working in the areas of contract negotiations and international affairs. In 2001, he was elected vice-chairman of the Metalworkers' Union; in November 2005 was elected as the first chairman of the newly formed trade union IF Metall.
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