Hassan Abadir Hassan was only 34 personal votes away from knocking out the Left Party’s MP Ciczie Weidby in the election. Now, he is first in line as her replacement. Previously, the Left Party politician was sentenced to prison after smuggling nearly 117 kilos of drugs into Sweden. The Left Party is aware of the conviction but has remained silent about it – stating that they have full confidence in the Somali migrant.

Hassan Abadir Hassan, 47, ran a strong personal campaign for the Left Party in Jönköping. When all votes were counted, he had received 750 personal crosses in the parliamentary election. That was only 34 fewer than the sitting MP Ciczie Weidby’s 784.

During parts of the vote counting, Hassan even appeared to be on track to surpass Weidby. Sveriges Radio reported during the count on the possibility that he could take the seat, while SVT described him as a potential ‘wildcard’ in the election.

When the final result was clear, however, Weidby had retained her seat. Hassan is instead first in the substitute group behind her, according to an investigation by the news and legal data service Verifiera. This means he could serve in Parliament as a substitute.

Smuggled Over a Hundred Kilos of Drugs

Behind the political career, however, lies a prison sentence. Verifiera, which offers court documents and legal research and background checks among other services, has investigated Hassan’s background since he came to Sweden from Somalia in 1991, and, after a short stay in England, returned to Sweden in 2004.

According to a judgment from Malmö District Court cited by Verifiera, Hassan was convicted of drug smuggling after bringing 116.7 kilos of the Somali drug khat from Denmark to Sweden. The shipment crossed over the Öresund and entered Sweden via Lernacken in Malmö.

Hassan admitted to the act. In court, he said that he was initially asked to drive a person to Malmö, but the trip then continued to Denmark and further towards Odense.

According to Hassan’s own account, he only learned what the transport was really about during the journey. He stated that he was persuaded to participate and was offered 10,000 SEK for the job, but he never received any money. The district court found the drug smuggling proven and sentenced him to one year in prison.

Rocketed to Prominence in the Election

The prison sentence has not prevented Hassan from being entrusted with roles within the Left Party. Since 2022, he has been a substitute in the culture and leisure committee in Jönköping, as still stated in the party’s own presentation of their local officials. In February this year, he was also elected a full board member of the Left Party Jönköping’s executive board.

For the municipal elections, Hassan was placed second on the Left Party’s list in Jönköping. The election turned out to be a personal breakthrough. According to Verifiera, he garnered 794 personal votes in the municipal election, making him the fifth most personally voted-for politician in the municipality. He came even closer to a mandate in the parliamentary election, where just 34 crosses separated him from Weidby.

Knocked on Thousands of Doors

One explanation for his success and many personal votes is reported to be the Left Party’s comprehensive door-to-door canvassing in Jönköping. According to Abadir himself, he played a prominent role.

The party especially focused on immigrant-dense areas such as Råslätt, Österängen, Öxnehaga, and southern Huskvarna. In Råslätt Västra, the Left Party received 30.6 percent of the votes. After the election, Hassan told SVT that the party had knocked on over 8,000 doors in the city. In another interview, he said that he himself had probably accounted for a couple of thousand of them.

On the Left Party Jönköping’s website, Hassan is introduced as a support educator and candidate. There, he describes his political engagement by saying that every person deserves to be heard and respected, and that he is running to be the voters’ voice.

The Left Party Knew About the Prison Sentence

The drug conviction is also no news to the Left Party’s local organization. The party has known, but remained silent to voters.

Verifiera reports that they have been in contact with the Left Party in Jönköping. The party confirms awareness of Hassan’s prior conviction and at the same time states that they nonetheless have full confidence in him.

After the closely contested personal vote, the former drug-convicted Left Party politician now sits directly behind Ciczie Weidby in the line for Parliament. If, for any reason, she cannot fulfill her assignment, Hassan will take her seat in the chamber.