• Sweden edition
Politics

Sweden's Pirate Party doubles membership

Published: 25 Nov 12 16:30 CET | Print version
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/44646/20121125/

The Swedish Pirate Party has doubled its membership to 16,000 within the last few weeks after the party's Facebook page was linked by a file-sharing website, according to a report by Sveriges Radio.

The influx of members places the Pirate Party ahead of the Left and Green parties in membership terms.

"If you compare our member figures with the parliamentary parties we are actually well placed. I hope that this bodes well for the election work which will start in 1-1.5 years," party leader Anna Troberg told Sveriges Radio's Ekot news programme.

There is one reservation to the party's booming membership however and that is the fact that it is free to join the Pirate Party while other parliamentary parties charge a fee.

Sweden's Pirate Party caused an election stir in 2009 when it claimed a seat in the EU parliament after winning 7.1 percent of the votes.

The party later added a further seat following the ratification of the Lisbon Treaty.

The reason behind the dramatic increase in membership in recent weeks is a result of a police raid on file-sharing website Tankafetast.com in October, which temporarily stopped visitors downloading files.

In protest the website directed all its traffic to the Pirate Party.

The Pirate Party's membership peaked at just over 50,000 people prior to the 2009 election in the wake of The Pirate Bay trial. This figure however dropped off sharply though 2010 and 2011 as the issue fell out of the media spotlight.

TT/The Local/pvs (news@thelocal.se)

What do you think? Leave your comment below.

Your comments about this article:

The comments below have not been moderated in advance and are not produced by The Local unless clearly stated. Readers are responsible for the content of their own comments. Comments that breach our terms and conditions will be removed.

ADD YOUR COMMENT   (YOU MUST LOG IN OR REGISTER TO MAKE A COMMENT)
Today's headlines
Body of lonely Swedish patient forgotten for days

Body of lonely Swedish patient forgotten for days

A deceased patient who had no relatives was left in a room for five days at the Örebro University Hospital before staff realized the body was still there. READ () »

Sweden sells 6.4-percent stake in Nordea

Sweden sells 6.4-percent stake in Nordea

The Swedish government announced on Wednesday that it had sold 6.4 percent of its stake in Nordic banking giant Nordea, reducing its holding to 7.0 percent. READ () »

Scab row as students disrupt bus strike

Scab row as students disrupt bus strike

Stockholm bus traffic was at a standstill Wednesday as drivers launched a major strike at midnight, but a group of Conservative youths disrupted the action by replacing a bus route between two of the city's major hospitals. READ () »

Tax bill for politician's ties to far-right site

Tax bill for politician's ties to far-right site

Sweden Democrat MP Kent Ekeroth has to pay tax for money sent to his bank account as donations to two far-right websites that he claims to have nothing to do with editorially. READ () »

Sweden to send 160 troops in Mali mission

Sweden to send 160 troops in Mali mission

Sweden's parliament has voted to send up to 160 troops to Mali in July in an effort to support peace and security in the west African nation. READ () »

The Local List
Top ten ways you know you've turned Swedish

Top ten ways you know you've turned Swedish

For some foreigners living in Sweden, a natural "inner Swede" can develop that often doesn't show its face until you're back home again. The Local's Patrick Reilly lists the top ten ways this inner-Swede can change your life. READ () »

Extreme-right sites beat political party pages

Extreme-right sites beat political party pages

Far-right websites in Sweden are receiving so much traffic they are seven times more popular than the established political parties' online portals. READ () »

Assange is the UK's problem: lawyer

Assange is the UK's problem: lawyer

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is prepared to spend another five years inside the Ecuadorean embassy in London, but one Swedish lawyer said on Tuesday that the decision would not affect the Swedish case. READ () »

More Politics

 

Find a new job in Sweden now
18/06 Accounting Specialist
Hays
Katowice, SLA
18/06 Agency General Manager ? Scandinavia
Göteborg
18/06 C++ Developer
Stockholm
18/06 Chemical Plant Manager
The Valspar
Hendrik Ido Ambacht (NL)
18/06 Cloud Architect
Capgemini Sverige AB
Malmö, SKÅ
18/06 Compliance Manager - Nordics
Ace European Group Ltd
Stockholm

ALL JOBS »


 

 

Highlights
WikiCommons Private/Scanpix Scanpix fastighetsbyrån.se Elodie Pradet/The Local File photo: AP File photo: Scanpix Private Göran Höglund/Flickr Finest.se Scanpix Ann Törnkvist Stefan Larsson Private DoToday Scanpix, C More The Local Finest.se Facebook The Local Scanpix Ann Törnkvist/The Local Henrik Montgomery/Scanpix CDC/Wikipedia (File) kristja/sxc.hu (File) Fastighetsbyrån Swedish expats use book club to survive London Finest.se Sergei Grits Silence/WikiCommons Oliver Gee Oliver Gee Scanpix veidekke/Flickr Eddie Gee David V. Hughes

 

Latest news from The Local in Germany

More news from Germany at thelocal.de

Latest news from The Local in France

More news from France at thelocal.fr

Latest news from The Local in Norway

More news from Norway at thelocal.no

Latest news from The Local in Switzerland

More news from Switzerland at thelocal.ch

Search News


Register

Register now for:
> Free use of noticeboard
> Special discounts
> Weekly news roundup
> Unlimited use of discuss

REGISTER FOR FREE »


Blog Update: Stripes News

13 June 22:03

This weeks results..week 24/25 »

"A weekend full of surprises and LFC football. Results look like this: Div 5 Men won 4-2, K1 lost 5-0, K2 won 2-1, Vets lost 3-2, R1 lost 4-1. Korpen Ladies play Monday night and on the 26th the Div5 Men close the first half season with the last match before the summer kicks in. /LFC " READ »

Trade binary options
Create an account with Banc De Binary, the world’s most reputable binary options firm, and start cashing in today! You can start by practicing with our free $50,000 demo account.
www.bbinary.com
Therapy in English
Expat counsellor & talk therapist offers counselling for stress, relationship issues, sexuality, culture adjustment & life coaching. Private & confidential. Stockholm or Skype. Contact me today! 08-559 22 636 or
CLICK HERE
The Local's new Marketplace
Find products and services that are specifically focused on English speakers living in Sweden!
FULL DETAILS
Counseling in English
Individuals & Couples - Stockholm Beth Rogerson PhD - Clinical, Marriage & Family Therapist
Click or call 08-5580 1266 now