On Facebook, Jonas Sjöstedt writes that he will move to his family in Vietnam and that he will not run for re-election during the party's congress in May.
- There has been a rumor about this for the past six months, but he has denied it. The moment he announces that he is leaving the post of party leader, he becomes a so-called "lame duck" and this will of course hit the party in Parliament this spring, says SVT's internal political commentator Mats Knutson.
Is the departure voluntary?
- There has been internal criticism against him. With the release of Stefan Löfven (S) as prime minister and not being tough enough in his opposition role. But at this stage I cannot give a definitive answer as to whether Sjöstedt's departure is voluntary or whether he has been maneuvered away.
How come the message is coming today?
- It was unexpected that the message came just today, because if the Left Party is serious about its opposition policy and to push a hard line against the government in Parliament, it is a rare ill-chosen opportunity to communicate the same day that he initiates a process for to try to run the government in parliament. In that case, this indicates that the departure is not voluntary.