The Swedish Prime Minister, Mr Goran Persson, remained narrowly ahead of opposition leader Mr Carl Bildt in the popularity stakes yesterday, two days before the general election.
A survey by pollster SKOP found 44 per cent of 822 Swedes questioned on September 16th and 17th preferred Mr Persson, leader of the ruling Social Democrats, as prime minister while 43 per cent opted for Mr Bildt.
A Gallup poll of 556 people on Thursday suggested 30 per cent of Swedes preferred Persson and 29 per cent favoured Bildt.
The results were a sharp contrast from a year ago when Mr Bildt was riding high as he returned to Swedish politics after two successful years as an international peace mediator in Bosnia.
In August 1997, 64 per cent of Swedes viewed Mr Bildt, leader of the conservative Moderate Party and former prime minister from 1991-94, as the preferred premier. Mr Persson lagged far behind with 31 per cent of support.
Even as recently as a month ago Mr Persson was losing out to Mr Bildt with 41 per cent of support against Mr Bildt's 53 per cent.
A second SKOP poll published yesterday showed that most Swedes believed the Social Democrats were the best party to solve Sweden's economic problems.
From 860 people questioned 52 per cent said the Social Democrats were more suited for this task with only 38 per cent saying the job would be best performed by a non-socialist coalition headed by the Moderates.
Neither of Sweden's two main parties, the Social Democrats and the Moderates, is set to win a majority tomorrow's poll, rating 36.8 and 24.8 per cent respectively, according to a SIFO poll yesterday.
They will have to scramble for the support of some of the five smaller parties.
Swedish police have issued a nationwide alert after a neo-Nazi leader, considered violent and dangerous, escaped from prison. Niclas Loefdahl (24) was serving time for sending a letter bomb to the Swedish Justice Minister. Loefdahl claims to be the leader of the Swedish chapter of Combat 18. Combat 18, based in England, is one of the most violent groups of skinheads, and its members are under observation by British police who follow football hooligans.
Police said he escaped with a 42-year old accomplice while they were going under supervision to cast their ballots at a post office in Oerebro, west of Stockholm, in advance of Sweden's general election tomorrow.