From Malmö to Manhattan: The U.S. Election Through Swedish Eyes

While the U.S. prepares to vote, the world is watching closely. From debates on healthcare to climate change, this election promises to shape not only America’s future but also global policies. While Americans cast their ballots, students in Sweden, far from the polling booths, are forming their own opinions on the political spectacle. So, to find these opinions, I began my search for university students who were eager to take a stance.

On the way up to Orkanen’s fourth floor I stumbled upon my old friend Ebba, 21, who’s studying in the teaching program here at MAU. After being bribed with some fika, Ebba gladly sat down to further explain her opinions:

“From what I’ve heard, there’s been a lot of drama surrounding this election. In all honesty, I didn’t watch the first debate, and I don’t use social media much, so my main source of information comes from Aktuellt. I’ve gotten the impression that the first debate was hectic, and I’ve heard that Trump doesn’t want to participate in more debates against Harris, which, frankly, I think is childish.”

She continues by revealing that she was more interested in the 2016 election, when Trump and Clinton were competing for the American votes.

“I think he’s been immature since the beginning. And when Trump was attacked I think Biden realized that if the Democrats were ever going to win this election, he needed to drop out. He seems too old and confused to run for president again…”

When asked what she’s anticipating about the U.S. election, Ebba brings up the subject of  “fake news” and expresses her concern about its spread. From what she’s heard, many Republicans support Trump’s statements without fact checking them, which she thinks could become even more normalized if he’d win again.

“Personally I think it’s scary if Trump wins this election, but I also feel like I know too little about the Democrats and the candidates overall to comment on that.”

Ebba ran off to her lecture about diophantine equations and the search for opinionated continued. While heading back to my own classroom, I received a text message from Ebba – It was a reminder that we actually know someone who’s really interested in politics at the university. A couple of hours later I had my next interview set and was searching through the library to find the person in question. Axel, 20, just started a course in political science and has previously studied social anthropology and sociology. When I asked Axel what he’s heard about the election, it was clear that this was a subject he knows a lot about:

“The first thing that comes to my mind is the multiple assassination attempts on Trump and the disturbing claims he’s made, like the one about Springfield’s immigrants eating cats and dogs. I’ve heard both good and bad about the Democratic marketing strategy of “brat summer”, and there’s been a strong backlash against Harris, as many people refer to her as a “war criminal” because of her stance on the Israel-Palestine war. On the other hand, both of the candidates seem to share the same opinion. It’s like voting for an evil person or someone who’s worse than evil.”

Axel tells me about the vice-presidential candidates, noting that Americans seem content with Tim Walz, while JD Vance has faced some negative rumors. He also brought up the third-party presidential candidate, Robert F. Kennedy Jr, who dropped out of the election late august, and commented on his spread of conspiracy theories and other misinformation on X.

“That kind of rhetoric seems to be normalized in the U.S. now. If you look at the 2012 election between Obama and Romney, the politicians debated and spoke to each other in a whole different manner. Since his first election, Trump has started a “playground attitude” which is really effective to reach some of his voters. The formality of the presidential debates has disappeared and is now closer to what we see in the British parliament. Hillary Clinton couldn’t keep up with Trump’s debate tactics, and neither could Joe Biden. No one has been able to meet Trump’s level until Harris! She seems more youthful even though she’s not that much younger, and she also jokes around but in a more respectful way, while Trump goes for the informal and harsh attitude. Trump is like an actor who goes into a role and in comparison, Harris seems more educated.”

The gender perspective and female expectations is something Axel elaborates during the interview. He states that men can often express “whatever” and people won’t think too much about it, while women actively need to be well-read to be taken seriously.

“If Harris is going to have a chance against Trump she needs to present facts after facts. But honestly, I think that the fact checkers in the first debate were ineffective, only helping Trump bolster his “underdog” narrative. When the fact checkers are mainly arguing with Trump, he can use it and say ‘Look – they’re only going after me, I’m the underdog, they clearly don’t want me here so you have to vote for me.'”

Many extremist conservatives are, in Axel’s opinion, so faithful that they won’t care if Trump spreads “fake news”, as they’re still going to vote for him.

“A minority of Trump’s supporters are extremists, but these are the people who stormed the Capitol in January 2021. They spread conspiracy theories and love to victimize themselves even though they aren’t victims, and Trump knows exactly how to reach out to these people with his rhetoric. It’s the “We vs Them” approach where you create a common enemy to blame for all the misfortune, and Trump’s doing it effectively – either by antagonizing the Democrats or the immigrants.”

When Axel’s asked about the results he answers that whatever happens, the two presidential candidates will still mainly opt for capital interests. He thinks that the U.S. is going to leave NATO if Trump wins, which some Swedes might fear, but since Sweden’s in good alliances with Scandinavia and the rest of Europe we shouldn’t be too concerned.

“Look at Ukraine, they weren’t in NATO when the war started and the west still sends them loads of material. So from a security perspective, I don’t think we have anything to worry about. The U.S. probably won’t do anything actively against Sweden either. For them, we’re just a country up in the north that they confuse with Switzerland. Of course examples like Project 2025 and the overall American opinion could determine how we look at things in the rest of the world, but one shouldn’t go around worrying about these things in everyday life.”

I thanked Axel for the interview and went back to my classroom. To gain a diverse range of perspectives, my mind was set to find students from various faculties at the school. Since I had recently become acquainted with some product design students, I reached out to see if any of them were politically interested. This week, they were having a group project about the history of design and, as they were meeting to further discuss the years between 1976-90, I got to interview Arashk, 37:

“There’s both pros and cons with the two presidential candidates. Trump’s telling us about people eating pets and all the criminals entering their country, while Kamala speaks more about microeconomics and supporting small business owners. She presents a more academic language than Trump, which is a reflection of her voters.”

Arashk gets his information from sites like OMNI and states that misinformation has increased, so it’s important to choose credible sources. He encourages people to go beyond social media as he thinks they take things out of context. When I ask for his opinion on the candidates, Arashk compares Trump’s successes to Sverigedemokraterna’s successes.

“When Sverigedemokraterna entered Riksdagen many people were in shock. The immigrant numbers had increased and the people who were used to the Swedish life had to make an adjustment. Today, different cultures are more normalized in Sweden, but so is racism.

Everything Trump stands for, much like Sverigedemokraterna, could become normalized and create even bigger gaps in the society. When the immigrants arrived in Sweden we needed to change as a society to understand their cultures, just as they needed to assimilate into the Swedish one. But it seems like the Americans can’t truly accept their immigrants and that’s why they want them out of the country. The Republicans mainly bring up horrible things about them, but seem to forget all the beautiful contributions they’ve made. Trump is either really smart or really stupid, but he successfully reaches out to these people and makes them feel something.

Harris is a different caliber, they would’ve never accepted if she expressed herself the same way he does. The impression I get from her is “let’s all sit by the fire and grill marshmallows, kumbaya.” Trump as president will on the other hand create an imbalance in how we care for one another. Bigger societal gaps, more conspiracy theories and more hate.”

The future of politics can go one of two ways, Arashk suggests: either we’ll see a bunch of “Tik Tok people” taking over, or we’ll see a more mature society where people have grown tired of the fake news and Trump’s immature rhetoric and politics.

The week was coming to an end and as I was searching for one last interviewee, a classmate of mine was happy to help. Julia, 20, studies a bachelor in graphic design, and as we were leaving our classroom to head to the central station, one last interview began:

“I mainly get my information from SR Play or Aftonbladet, but of course also through social media platforms like Tik Tok. I think what @kamalahq did with “brat summer” was a cool marketing strategy to reach out to the younger generation of voters. The humor of it all was a great way to catch their attention and interest.”

Julia also comments on Biden dropping out:

“I think it was good that he dropped, something needed to happen in the Democratic party. I think he realized that they needed someone else if they were going to have a chance in winning this election.”

Julia finds the thought of Trump winning the election scary. She tells me about Project 2025 and that considering the state of the world, Trump’s individualistic approach can become somewhat problematic. With a leader like him, she questions what can happen with the rights of abortion worldwide, since the world is influenced by the U.S. When changing the subject to Kamala Harris, Julia lightens up.

“I’d love to see Harris win! I think a female president would be good for their country. On the other hand, should we expect more riots if she does? I feel like what happened at the Capitol was the start of something bigger. The extreme Republicans seem to have an undemocratic mindset and always find some way to blame the Democrats when things go bad for them. There’s a certain tension around the election, but I’ll be celebrating if Kamala wins, and I’ll definitely be following the election on November 5th.”

Julia went back home, and I, as usual, rushed to catch bus number 4. Half an hour later, I found myself right back where I started, back in my one-room apartment, still thinking about the question that had occupied my mind all week: What do the Swedish students think about the U.S. election? While some students were more passionate and informed, others preferred to observe. Still, there was one common thread: a shared concern about what a U.S. election means for the rest of the world, even for students here in Sweden.

It became clear that many students leaned toward the Democratic side, perhaps reflecting the deeply rooted socialist values that characterizes Swedish society. And maybe the influences of jantelagen, a Scandinavian concept that discourages bragging or standing out from the crowd, leads us to criticize Trump more than others might. But what truly stands out isn’t just the preference of one candidate over another, it’s the deeper realization that what happens in the U.S. ripples across borders. As we’re discussing these global events in classrooms and libraries, the decisions made across the sea will shape policies and debates that influence the rest of the world, including here in Sweden. Whether it’s climate change, trade or even cultural shifts, the influence of American politics on the global stage can’t be ignored.

In the end, we’re all connected. Swedish students may not have a vote in the U.S. election, but they definitely have a voice in the conversation. Much like Carrie Bradshaw and her friends ponder about their Manhattan lives, Swedish students reflect on theirs, anticipating what might happen next for not only the U.S., but for the world.