Right-wing voters for nuclear power - but not where they live

A majority of Swedes are in favor of expanding nuclear power, but locally, the construction of nuclear power plants can be a source of conflict. Right-wing voters in particular are in favor of new nuclear power plants - but they do not want them near where they live.

There is also a strong polarization - one fifth are either strongly in favour of nuclear or wind power, and critical of the other energy source.

Kärnkraftverket i Forsmark. Foto: TT Bild

This is the result of a study on Swedes' attitudes to wind and nuclear power published by researchers from the University of Gävle, Uppsala University and Luleå University.

The study, based on a survey of over 5000 randomly selected Swedes, shows that 53 percent of Swedes think that nuclear power should be expanded, and nearly 44 percent can imagine nuclear power in their home municipality. At the same time, around 30% of respondents are strongly opposed to nuclear power being built in their home municipality and very few can imagine nuclear power being built near where they live.

- "It does not necessarily mean that conflicts will arise if new reactors are built alongside existing nuclear power plants, but a future development with small-scale nuclear power reactors that can be built in more places could meet strong local opposition," says Stephan Barthel, professor of environmental science at the University of Gävle, and one of the researchers behind the study.

Wind power in home municipality has stronger support

As an energy source, wind power has significantly stronger support. Three out of four can imagine wind power in their home municipality and 58 percent are in favor of wind power being built within five kilometers of their home.

Those in favor of wind power are more concerned about the environment and are politically more liberal and left-wing. Those in favor of nuclear power are more conservative, critical of immigration, and have low trust in government and politicians. However, the importance of ideology and values decreased when the researchers asked about building nuclear and wind power near one's home. Opinions on nuclear and wind power seem to be influenced by the political debate, but this influence tends to diminish when individuals are personally affected, according to the study.

Highly polarized

Overall, the study shows that the general public supports the expansion of both wind and nuclear power, but that there is a smaller group of individuals who have clearly polarized views on these energy sources. About one-fifth are strong supporters of either nuclear or wind power, while being highly critical of the corresponding energy source.

- To avoid these divisions deepening further and paralyzing energy policy, political parties should seek cross-party agreements. Our study shows that it is possible to find broad support for such political solutions," says Daniel Lindvall, PhD in Sociology at Uppsala University.

Facts about the study

The study "The polarization of energy preferences - A study on social acceptance of wind and nuclear power in Sweden" External link. is a collaboration between the University of Gävle, Uppsala University and Luleå University. It is based on survey responses from more than 5,200 randomly selected Swedes and is conducted within the research program Fairtrans, which has been funded by Mistra and Formas. The results have been published in the scientific journal Energy Policy.

The study is authored by Daniel Lindvall, Stephan Barthel, Patrik Sörqvist and Sofie Lindeberg.

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Stephan Barthel, profilbild

Stephan Barthel

Professor in Sustainability Science

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Anders Munck, profilbild

Anders Munck

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This page was last updated 2025-01-22