On Monday, SD politician Kent Ekeroth was interviewed by Swedish Radio about the election results, where the Sweden Democrats are losing ground while the red-green bloc leads the vote count. Ekeroth claimed that the “immigrant vote” seems likely to decide the election and described what he calls “voting cattle” imported to secure left-wing power. Aftonbladet has now had researcher Christer Mattsson describe Ekeroth’s reasoning as a conspiracy theory—without at the same time informing readers of his ties to Expo.

Ekeroth’s reasoning is based on the red-green parties being, for several decades, the main proponents of more expansive immigration and a generous migration policy, while these parties have strong support among voters with a migrant background. This is supported by opinion polls, SVT’s election survey, and vote numbers from areas with large immigrant populations, where a big majority votes for red-green parties.

However, this was a view that Swedish Radio questioned. During the interview, the reporter repeatedly interrupted Ekeroth to question his conclusions.

Among other things, she argued that Ekeroth lacks knowledge about how easily Swedish citizenships have been granted. When Ekeroth responded to the claim, the reporter urged him to “drop” the discussion.

– Now you’re using very harsh words, she also said during the interview.

READ MORE: SR tries to lecture Ekeroth on immigrant votes: “You don’t know anything about that”

Afterward, the Social Democratic-affiliated newspaper Aftonbladet invited researcher and expert Christer Mattsson to comment on Ekeroth’s statements. Mattsson is a doctor of pedagogy at the University of Gothenburg and the head of the Segerstedt Institute.

He regularly appears as an expert commentator on “right-wing extremism” in SVT and other legacy media outlets.

According to Mattsson, one cannot designate a group as homogeneous and claim it is homogeneity that explains their behavior. Mattsson believes there are conspiratorial traits in Ekeroth’s reasoning.

– What makes it a conspiracy is that it is suggested that someone wanted this to happen for a purpose other than the one it did, he tells Aftonbladet.

Christer Mattsson also draws parallels between Ekeroth’s comments on Swedish Radio and the idea of “the great replacement,” which he and Aftonbladet describe as an established far-right conspiracy theory.

– The generous migration rules weren’t created by a small elite in secret to replace the people, Mattsson tells Aftonbladet.

Mattsson says he does not question that Sweden’s demographics have changed but that it is not reasonable to place responsibility for the country’s migration policy on individual people or groups.

– It is imagined motives behind the change that make it a conspiracy theory, he says.

The interview also touched on the issue of voter participation among new Swedish citizens. When Ekeroth was asked if it shouldn’t be seen as positive that citizens do their duty and go and vote, he objected to the development.

– It’s not good if Swedes give up control over their own country to people who got their citizenship with their breakfast cereal. People who can’t even speak Swedish, Ekeroth told SR.

Christer Mattsson has another view. He argues that it is basically positive if more people vote, especially in geographic areas where turnout previously was low. According to Mattsson, such a trend must be seen as “an important and productive part of our democracy.”

Did Muslims Decide the Election?

Meanwhile, the issue of immigration’s significance for the election result has also been raised by SD leader Jimmie Åkesson. In the final SVT debate, Åkesson said Muslim immigration could decide the election. Mattsson objects to making voters’ religious affiliation the basis for analysis.

– I don’t think it has so much to do with whether they are Muslims or not. What’s needed is a much more precise description of what is perceived as a problem than pointing out a specific group as the problem, says Christer Mattsson.

However, Mattsson’s argument is contrasted by a Novus poll published by the magazine Fokus in August.

This survey points to very strong red-green support among voters who identify as Muslims. The group accounted for 2.6 percent of respondents, and 85 percent said they would vote for S, V, or MP. Including C, the opposition’s support was just under 86 percent, compared to just over 14 percent for the Tidö parties.

The Expo Researcher

Christer Mattsson, now presented by Aftonbladet as a truth-telling researcher to criticize SD politician Kent Ekeroth’s comments as a conspiracy theory, is a researcher linked to the Social Democrats and the far-left website Expo.

Previously, top SD member Mattias Karlsson published a post about Christer Mattsson’s background on social media. There, he accused the researcher of having “a past as a paid representative of the Social Democrats,” and that the main focus of his political work throughout his career had been to oppose SD.

Christer Mattsson has also been a regular contributor to the far-left magazine Expo. In an interview with the newspaper Arbetet he described himself as a “fanatic for tolerance” and is described there as an “expert on promoting greater tolerance.”

Researcher: You Are Not Allowed to Say “Left-Liberals”

The researcher previously described the use of the term “replacement” in Sweden as part of “far-right conspiracy theories.” According to him, the major demographic changes in Sweden are not about any kind of replacement; to describe the development in that way, he says, is to express a so-called far-right conspiracy theory.

READ ALSO: Demographic powder keg: Researchers warn of civil war in Sweden’s future

Mattsson describes the word “replacement” as part of a “fascist worldview.” It is a word he would like to see people stop using in Sweden, as he believes it is problematic and based on antisemitic beliefs.

– Why resort to such a term with roots in a profoundly conspiratorial and fascist worldview, Mattsson previously told GP.

Last year, Samnytt also highlighted the researcher when the Sweden Democrats presented their white paper. At that time, he argued that SD’s current representatives carry a “collective guilt” for the party’s historical past.

He has also previously argued about what should be allowed to be said in the Swedish political debate. Among other things, he has claimed that the term “left-liberal” is a modern version of an antisemitic code word and therefore should not be used.

For Christer Mattsson, hearing SD leader Jimmie Åkesson use terms like “the left-liberal establishment” and “the left-liberal clique” is problematic, according to him. The researcher believes the choice of words is connected to Nazis and the far right.

READ ALSO: SVT expert to SD: You are not allowed to say “left-liberals”—there are none