As Sweden approaches three pivotal elections—the EU elections, the parliamentary elections (Riksdagsvalet 13 Sep 2026), and the church elections—we must address a fundamental democratic deficit in our political system.
In the Swedish Parliament, there exists a religious Christian party (KD) whose primary mandate is to represent Christian voters. Meanwhile, citizens belonging to other faiths—Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and others—lack equivalent political parties to represent their religious identities in state politics. The exact same imbalance exists in the European Parliament.
This asymmetry is a clear symptom of the incomplete separation between state and church, and between religion and politics. When secular state institutions favor the political organization of one specific religion, true equality is impossible.
To restore democratic equality, we must fully separate the state from the church and religion from politics. This is achieved through the Church Election Reform, transitioning to a Multi-Religion Election System (MRES).
Under this system, political parties are removed from religious elections. Instead, all faith communities manage their internal democratic affairs—including youth participation (16-year-olds voting) and gender equality (female leadership)—independently of state and party politics.
This local reform in Sweden has profound global implications. The incomplete separation of religion and state is not just a Swedish issue; it is the root cause of the most intractable conflicts in the world.
By democratizing faith communities and removing religious extremism from state politics, we open up a realistic, peaceful pathway to resolving the 78-year-long conflict between Israel and Palestine. When politics is secular and religion is democratically managed internally, the fuel for religiously framed political violence is extinguished.
Ahead of the elections on 13 September 2026, we demand that all political parties address the following:
We cannot afford to pass another 78-year conflict down to the next generation. The 2026 elections are an opportunity for Sweden to lead the world in democratic innovation and peacebuilding.
Signed,
Multireligionvalsystem (MRES) & De Nya Svenskarna
Share this open letter with your representatives. Ask your party where they stand on the separation of church and state before 13 Sep 2026.