Mohamsson was elected on Tuesday morning as The Liberals' new party leader. Just three hours later, she stood on the Almedalen stage in Visby with a blue and yellow flag as a backdrop.
She herself notes that she was not the obvious candidate, the party seems to have favored climate and environment minister Romina Pourmokhtari, who according to media reports declined.
I have probably never been an obvious choice for anything I have done, including this role. But I like to strike from an underdog position, she says to TT after the speech.
”Folkpartiet classic”
From the stage, Mohamsson praised the Tidö Agreement's law policy, talked about reduced tax on labor, and brought up The Liberals' core issue, school.
She described how she started in a "flaky school controlled by the Social Democrats", which was a certain difference from the German school system she attended earlier.
This is my promise to you who are listening. The school will become a knowledge institution. Folkpartiet classic.
She also promises that the state will step forward and create order in the independent school system – knowledge should take precedence over profit.
In a press conference after the speech, she said that The Liberals will give a clear message on the government issue after the summer holidays. The party will also get a new party secretary and a new party leadership this week, and in a week, a government reshuffle will take place where the former party leader Johan Pehrson is expected to leave the post as Minister of Education.
Criticizes the red-greens
No criticism of the cooperation with the Sweden Democrats was aired in the speech. She said that she can "cooperate with all parties", but then went on the attack against the left side of politics.
On the left side of politics, there is a lack of both consensus and insight into Sweden's problems, she said.
She attacked the Left Party for wanting to leave NATO, the Green Party for wanting to stop "Rominareactors", and the Center Party for focusing on the person before political content.
This is not an alternative you want to cooperate with if you want to take Sweden in a better and safer direction.
Regarding the Tidö cooperation, she thinks that "much is good".
But of course, there are things where I would probably be tougher in the negotiations going forward, not least for example labor immigration, where I think that if people come here and do the right thing, it is also important that we see that force and take it in, she says to TT.
Simona Mohamsson was elected as The Liberals' party secretary earlier this year and has previously been vice chairman of the Liberal Youth Association, chairman of the social committee on Hisingen in Gothenburg, and a member of The Liberals' party board.
She is 30 years old, born in Hamburg, Germany, and moved to Överlida in Svenljunga municipality when she was seven years old.
Mohamsson has a degree in public administration, leadership, and digitalization from the University of Gothenburg and published the book Hong Kong RIP in 2021, which depicts the democracy struggle in Hong Kong.
She has described herself as a "classic liberal" but with social liberal features, speaks four languages, and as party secretary has worked with The Liberals' renewal project "Selma" among other things.
Her father is Palestinian and her mother is Lebanese, and the family changed their name from Mohammed to Mohamsson after moving to Sweden.
