It is considered self-evident that a moderate will be chosen and that the person probably already exists in the Government Offices, which most assessors in the larger Swedish media seem to agree on.
Move Quickly
Billström's hastily announced resignation via social media on Wednesday came as a surprise. By Tuesday in four days, when the Riksdag opens, Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson (M) must have a successor in place.
The speculations are already in full swing, and some names are mentioned more often than others: Maria Malmer Stenergard and Johan Forssell, among others by SVT, Aftonbladet, and Göteborgs-Posten.
Two siblings are mentioned by several, but perhaps not in the first instance: The Moderate Party's party secretary Karin Enström, previously also Minister of Defense, and her brother, the Prime Minister's national security adviser and childhood friend, Henrik Landerholm.
However, Landerholm himself has drawn up the guidelines for and built up an office for the national security adviser in the Government Offices. The job is to assist the Prime Minister in foreign and security policy. In a way, it's a mini-Foreign Ministry, right next to the Prime Minister.
Broad and Heavy
Landerholm's CV is broad and heavy. But does he want to switch to a foreign minister post that would compete with the job he has now, the national security adviser?
EU Parliamentarian Tomas Tobé is also a name mentioned by several.
A former state secretary and a current one are also mentioned, by Expressen : The outgoing EU Minister Jessika Roswall's state secretary, and EU diplomat veteran Christian Danielsson. Nicola Clase, currently ambassador to Finland but on her way to the post as Sweden's UN ambassador in New York, is mentioned. She was for a time state secretary with responsibility for EU and foreign affairs under Fredrik Reinfeldt during his prime ministerial period.
Reinfeldt and the former Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Carl Bildt are seen as real high-odds candidates.
