This thesis examines the influence of radical right-wing parties on governments. We analyse the Sweden Democrats (SD) integration policy and its impact on Sweden’s national labour market policy. As a radical right-wing populist party, SD has gained substantial political influence in recent years, becoming Sweden’s second-largest party after the 2022 election.

The study examines the mechanisms by which SD, despite not holding cabinet positions, has influenced national policymaking by promoting integration policies rooted in welfare chauvinism, economic nationalism, and cultural assimilation. Agenda-Setting Theory (Kingdon, 1995) was used to analyse how SD frames integration as a problem, proposes solutions, and uses political momentum to influence policy. We conduct a qualitative thematic content analysis to analyse how SD is framing integration policies.

The thesis continues with a comparative analysis of SD’s 2022 election manifesto with the Tidö-Agreement. Our findings show a degree of alignment between SD’s integration policies and the labour market policies agreed in the Tidö-Agreement.