Increasing hate, threats and harassment against female politicians are scaring women away from public life and forcing them to censor themselves, the Swedish government’s equality agency has said, warning that this poses a “big threat to democracy.”
Women’s safety in politics has come under heightened scrutiny in the Scandinavian country since October, when Anna-Karin Hatt resigned as leader of the Centre party after only five months in office, citing hate and threats.
“To constantly feel like you need to look over your shoulder and [to] not feel completely safe, not even at home … I am affected by it much more deeply than I thought I would [be],” she said at the time.
Hatt’s departure came three years after a man was found guilty of murdering Ing-Marie Wieselgren, the psychiatry coordinator for Sweden’s municipalities and regions, and of plotting to kill the then Centre party leader, Annie Lööf, at a democracy festival on the island of Gotland.
Lööf said she respected Hatt’s decision to resign, adding: “I also understand the reality she describes … I know how it feels.”
Public figures and researchers in Sweden say that the political atmosphere in the country – as elsewhere – has become more hostile and polarised in recent years. They say this is leading to censorship in public debate and having an effect on legislation.
Line Säll, head of unit at the department for analysis and follow-up at government body the Swedish Gender Equality Agency, said the climate was “scaring away a lot of groups” and prompting many women to “think twice” about political engagement.
She added: “For us who work with gender equality politics, it is also going in the wrong direction when it comes to the government and parliament’s goals for gender equality – that women should have the same power and influence as men over society and their own lives.”
Säll claimed that many women, particularly younger women, feel “enormous vulnerability” in public office, which impacted their ability to do their jobs and lead a normal life. “It’s a very big threat against democracy,” she said.
Some find the pressure untenable. “We have a much higher proportion of young women who resign from political office in local politics, so it has consequences when it comes to censoring yourself, taking yourself away from public life.”
Sweden has long been seen as a global leader on gender equality and prides itself on its freedom of expression and demonstration laws that are protected by the constitution. But statistics show a different story when it comes to politicians.
The 2025 politicians’ security survey, carried out by the Swedish National Council for Crime Prevention, found that 26.3% of female elected representatives reported being exposed to threats and harassment last year because of their position. The equivalent figure for men was 23.6%.
When it came to feeling vulnerable, the gender gap was markedly larger, at 32.7% of women reporting such feelings compared with 24% of men.
The overall percentage of people from a foreign background, regardless of sex, who reported feeling vulnerable was also significantly higher, at 31.5% compared to 24.1% of those from a Swedish background.
The most common consequence cited by respondents to the survey was to limit social media activity, followed by not getting involved or not speaking out on particular issues.
Säll said the issue of women falling silent and not engaging required “clear political focus from everyone that wants to live in a democracy”.
Sandra Håkansson, a researcher at Uppsala University specialising in gender and politics and political violence, said many politicians, particularly women, avoided making statements about high-risk issues, which was having a chilling effect on public debate and ultimately on legislation. She cited immigration policy in particular, where once far-right policies have now entered the mainstream.
“This is a policy area lots of Swedes consider very important,” she said. “Women and men’s views tend to differ slightly. Women are more positive about receiving refugees and men are more critical. But women are more silent in this debate. It’s possible that this is one of the reasons why we don’t have more diverging views.”
Håkansson added that debate was an important part of shaping policy, which was narrowed by women being too afraid to speak out. “Violence is setting the boundaries of public debates,” she said.
Describing hate and threats as an “occupational hazard” for female politicians, she said that Hatt’s resignation “raises lots of concerns”.
Swedish freedom of information laws mean most citizens’ addresses and personal details are openly listed online. Gangs have used this data to carry out deadly bombings on homes across the country, which Håkansson said had also added to politicians’ feeling of vulnerability.
Amineh Kakabaveh is a former Swedish member of parliament of Iranian Kurdish descent who has previously had police protection due to threats on her life. She said the rising influence of social media and a “harsher and more hostile” political climate in Sweden were central to the problem.
“Within the power structures there are, for example, parties such as the [far-right] Sweden Democrats, who to some extent promote traditional values rooted in parts of a historically male-dominated culture. They are also largely represented by men,” she said.
She added that while not all female politicians were targeted, “every single woman who is threatened represents a democratic deficit and an obstacle to the gender equality Sweden has fought for over many years”.
Kakabaveh said that as a woman with a foreign background, she faced attacks on multiple levels, including racist attacks, threats from Islamists and threats from foreign state actors. “I live with this reality today,” she said. “But the most important thing is that we do not allow ourselves to be silenced.”
Nina Larsson, Sweden’s minister for gender equality, said: “When women are scared away from politics or silenced, both democracy and free debate are damaged.”
Calling for a “clear culture change” around online behavioural norms, she added: “A big part of the problem is that we have for far too long accepted violations in digital environments.” She also called for social media companies to take “greater responsibility for stopping hate and threats”.
“The government has taken action, including by strengthening protection for elected officials,” she said. “But more must be done. Particularly to protect women who are more vulnerable than men.”
