Erna ''Gunilla'' Svantorp (née Karlsson; born 19 January 1964 in

Fässberg Parish Fässberg Parish is a parish in the Diocese of Gothenburg in Sweden. It covers most of the town of Mölndal Mölndal () is the seat and administrative centre of Mölndal Municipality and a part of the Gothenburg urban area on the west coast of S ...

Mölndal Municipality Mölndal Municipality (, semi-officially ) is a municipality in Västra Götaland in western Sweden, just south of Gothenburg. Its seat is located in Mölndal, which lies within the Gothenburg urban area, and the whole municipality is part of ...

Västra Götaland County Västra Götaland County () is a county or '' län'' on the western coast of Sweden. The county is the second most populous of Sweden's counties and it comprises 49 municipalities (''kommuner''). Its population of 1,616,000 amounts to 17% of S ...

(than called

Gothenburg and Bohus County Gothenburg and Bohus County () was a county of Sweden until 1 January 1998, when it was merged with Skaraborg County and Älvsborg County to form Västra Götaland County. The county was named after the city of Gothenburg and the historical pr ...

), Sweden) is a Swedish

Social Democratic Social democracy is a Social philosophy, social, Economic ideology, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports Democracy, political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achi ...

politician, member of the

Riksdag The Riksdag ( , ; also or , ) is the parliament and the parliamentary sovereignty, supreme decision-making body of the Kingdom of Sweden. Since 1971, the Riksdag has been a unicameral parliament with 349 members (), elected proportional rep ...

, and schoolteacher. She was elected in 2010 for the

constituency An electoral (congressional, legislative, etc.) district, sometimes called a constituency, riding, or ward, is a geographical portion of a political unit, such as a country, state or province, city, or administrative region, created to provi ...

Värmland County Värmland County () is a county or '' län'' in west central Sweden. It borders the Swedish counties of Dalarna, Örebro and Västra Götaland, as well as the Norwegian counties of Østfold, Akershus and Innlandet to the west. The title of Duke ...

and took up seat number 162, after the 2018 general election she was assigned seat number 22. As a recently elected MP of the Riksdag, she was assigned to the Education Committee as her main committee, she was also assigned to be an alternate for the

Cultural Affairs Committee (Parliamentary) Committee on Cultural Affairs (, KrU) is a parliamentary committee in the Swedish Riksdag. The committee areas of responsibility concern general cultural and educational purposes, popular education, youth activities, internation ...

and the Health and Welfare Committee. She later gave up her position as an alternate for the

on 9 November 2010 her party colleague and the bench neighbor from

Värmland Värmland () is a ''Provinces of Sweden, landskap'' (historical province) in west-central Sweden. It borders Västergötland, Dalsland, Dalarna, Västmanland, and Närke, and is bounded by Norway in the west. Name Several Latinized version ...

Berit Högman Berit Högman(born 14 August 1958) is a Swedish politician and civil servant who served as Governor of Västernorrland County from 16 April 2018 to 31 July 2023. A member of the Social Democrats, she was Member of Parliament (MP) from 2002 to ...

, became

Speaker Speaker most commonly refers to: * Speaker, a person who produces speech * Loudspeaker, a device that produces sound ** Computer speakers Speaker, Speakers, or The Speaker may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * "Speaker" (song), by David ...

for the committee. She kept her seat as a member of the Education Committee, and after she retook her position as an alternate for the Cultural Affairs Committee up until 2018. After the 2018 general election she kept her position as an alternate for the Cultural Affairs Committee and for the Health and Welfare Committee, she also became an alternate for the Industry and Trade Committee. In 2019 she was chosen to be the

for the Education Committee after the former Speaker was chosen by Prime Minister

Stefan Löfven Kjell Stefan Löfven (; officially Löfvén; born 21 July 1957) is a Swedish politician who has served as the President of European Socialists since October 2022. He previously served as Prime Minister of Sweden from October 2014 to November 20 ...

to be a part of the Löfven II Cabinet as the Minister for Higher Education and Research. From 2003 up until 2010, she was a member of the

County Council A county council is the elected administrative body governing an area known as a county. This term has slightly different meanings in different countries. Australia In the Australian state of New South Wales, county councils are special purpose ...

Värmland Regional Council Värmland () is a '' landskap'' (historical province) in west-central Sweden. It borders Västergötland, Dalsland, Dalarna, Västmanland, and Närke, and is bounded by Norway in the west. Name Several Latinized versions of the name exist, ...

. In 2006 she was Speaker for the Staff Committee and vice-Speaker for the County Council Board. She has been president of ''ABF Värmland''. She has also been a board member and the president of ''Konstfrämjandet'' in Värmland. Svantorp has a Masters in Philosophy, in pedagogy along with a high school teaching degree. On 11 June 2019 received the French

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

of the Knight (''Chevalier'') class. The award was awarded to her by ambassador David Cvach at the

Embassy of France, Stockholm The Embassy of France in Stockholm is the diplomatic mission of the French Republic in Sweden. The Chancery (building), chancery is located at Kommendörsgatan 13. The embassy The embassy is located in the district of Östermalm in the heart o ...

Personal life

Svantorp is the daughter of Jan Erik Karlsson and Ritva Karlsson. She resides in

Årjäng Årjäng is a Urban areas in Sweden, locality and the seat of Årjäng Municipality, Värmland County, Sweden with 3,228 inhabitants in 2010. It is located around from the Norway-Sweden border and on the road between Karlstad and Oslo. In 1540 År ...

. She was married to Eje Svantorp (1949–2014) from 1989 up until his death in 2014. She had four children with him.

Distinctions

, Knight (France).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Svantorp, Gunilla 1964 births Living people People from Årjäng Municipality Members of the Riksdag from the Social Democrats Knights of the Legion of Honour Women members of the Riksdag Members of the Riksdag 2010–2014 Members of the Riksdag 2014–2018 21st-century Swedish women politicians Members of the Riksdag 2018–2022 Members of the Riksdag 2022–2026