It also called for wide-scale political reform, including cutting government departments, reducing the Riksdag to 151 members and electing Prime Minister by direct ballot.

These years were the only time a right-wing populist party had been represented in the Riksdag until the election of members of the Sweden Democrats in September 2010.

[10][11] Before New Democracy was formed, both founders Bert Karlsson and Ian Wachtmeister were well known in Sweden as charismatic public figures; Karlsson a self-made man, founder, owner and manager of both a record company and an amusement park; and Count Wachtmeister, a businessman from a highly esteemed aristocratic family.

[14] Appearing on television on 23 November, a specially commissioned Sifo poll was announced where 23% of voters had responded that they could imagine voting for "Bert Karlsson's party".

[11][15] The party was given the name New Democracy on 1 December 1990, and was formally founded at a meeting in Skara on 4 February 1991 after having collected the required number of signatures for official registration.

[16] During an election-night television program, Bengt Westerberg, leader of the Liberal People's Party, left the studio in protest against New Democracy's immigration policy.

In the Riksdag, New Democracy abstained from voting on the office of Prime Minister, and thus gave the four-party liberal-conservative government led by Carl Bildt its indirect support.

[11] The party also started to disintegrate as a result of defections from the parliamentary group, exclusions, peculiar statements in the media, scandals and internal strife.

[11] In the summer of 1993, the party's rising star Vivianne Franzén started to talk about immigrant rape and Muslim ritual murders.

[11] The organization became marked by internal power struggles over the control of party funds, and it quickly fell into dismay (at least at a national level).

Laholm city council representative Elver Åkesson retained his seat until the 2002 elections, the last active member of the party to hold office.

[25] "New Democracy" was founded again in April 2002 under a new organisational registration,[26] and attempted to run for the 2002 elections, but received a mere 106 votes nationwide.

"[35] The party wanted to invest heavily in the fight against drug abuse and street violence, and impose severe penalties for what it called related "gangster activity."

[36] The party's anti-immigration stance was largely argued on economic terms, most often by comparing immigration costs and tax-cuts, although welfare chauvinism also sometimes was an element.

[37] The party wanted to introduce temporary residence permits for refugees, and that those who were allowed to stay should immediately be assimilated into Swedish society.