Less than half of Swedes now support monarchy: Poll

Ahead of Sweden’s future queen, Crown Princess Victoria’s, marriage to her former personal trainer, a new poll has found that less than half of the country’s population supports monarchy.

According to the FSI poll, the number of Swedes who consider the monarchy a good thing has dropped from 70% in 1996 to 46%.

At the same time, the number of Swedes saying they think the monarchy is a bad thing has soared from just 10% 15 years ago to 25% today.

The poll also indicated that the royal family itself has seen its support dwindle from 69% in 1996 to just 40%, while the number of Swedes disliking the royals shot up from 13% to 28%.

“It is probable that the increased scandal coverage in magazines and tabloids has led to the increase in negative attitudes,” The Telegraph quoted Joachim Timander, FSI opinion analyst, as saying.

“That would explain why support for the royal family, that is mainly to say the family members themselves, is declining faster than support for the monarchy as an institution,” he added.

Crown Princess Victoria will marry Daniel Westling on Saturday in one of the largest public celebrations ever organised in Sweden.

Around 6,000 troops and 2,000 police will patrol the streets and secure the processional route through Stockholm city centre following the ceremony as tens of thousands of Swedes and foreigners look on.