Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1913.djvu/1393

 CONSTITUTION AND GOVERNMENT 1271

Constitution and Government.

The fundamental laws of the Kingdom of Sweden are : — 1. The Constitution or Regerings-formen of June 6, 1809 ; 2. The amended regulations for the formation of the Diet of June 22, 1866 (modified under an act passed in 1909) ; 3. The law of royal succession of September 26, 1810 ; and 4. The law on the liberty of the press of July 16, 1812. The King must be a member of the Lutheran Church. His Constitutional power is exercised in conjunction with the Council of State or (in legislation) in concert with the Diet, and every new law must have the assent of the crown. The right of imposing taxes is, however, vested in the Diet. This Diet, or Parliament of the realm, consists of two Chambers, both elected by the people. The First Cii amber consists of 150 members. The election of the members takes place by the 'Landstings,' or provincial representations, 25 in number, and the municipal corporations of the towns, not already represented in the ' Landstings, ' Stockholm, Goteborg, Malmij, Norrkoping and Gafle. The Constituencies are arranged in 6 groups, in one of which an election takes place in September every year. The manner of the election is proportional and regulated by a special election law. All members of the First Chamber must be above 35 years of age, and must have possessed for at least three years previous to the election either real property to the taxed value of 50,000 kronor, or 2,777/., or an annual income of 3,000 kronor, or 166^. They are elected for the term of six years. The Second Chamber consists of 230 members elected for 3 years by universal suffrage, every Swede over 24 years of age, and not under any legal disability, having the right to vote. The country is divided into 56 constituencies, in each of which one member is elected for every 230th part of the population of the Kingdom it contains, the number to be elected in each constituency being ascertained prior to every 3-year period. The method of election is proportional, and the voter may (or may not) indicate on the ballot paper the party to which the candidates he votes for belong. On the voting- paper the names of the candidates must appear in vertical succession, and these names ma}^ not exceed in immber the number to be elected by more than 2. In the counting of votes, papers with the indication of party are grouped according to parties and the order of candidates within each group determined ; papers with no party indication are counted separately in a ' free group. ' The places to be given to the different groups of voting papers are decided according to the d'Hondt rule. Representatives and their substitutes are chosen in the same election. The members of both Chambers obtain salaries, free of income tax, for their services, at the rate of 1,200 kronor, or 66Z., for each session of four months, or, in the .case of an extra session, 10 kronor (lis.) a day, besides travelling expenses. The salaries and travelling expenses of the deputies are paid out of the public purse.

The executive power is in the hands of the King, who acts under the advice of a Council of State, the head of which is the Minister of State. The Ministry, appointed October 7, 1911, is composed as follows :—

Premier and Minister of State. — Karl Staaff.

Minister for Foreign Affairs. — Count Albert Ehrensvdrd.

Minister of Justice. — Gustaf Sandsirom.

Minister of War. — David Bergstrom.

Minister of Marine. — Jacob Larsson.

Minister of the Interior. — Axel Sehotte.

Minister of Finance. — Baron Theodor Adelswdrd,