Nila Vikhe Patil, daughter of Maharashtra educationist Ashok Vikhe Patil, has been elected as a Member of Parliament in Sweden, winning a seat from the Stockholm City constituency on September 19, 2026.
The 41-year-old will represent the Green Party in the 349-member Riksdag, Sweden’s parliament, following a general election on September 13 that saw the country’s left-leaning opposition secure a narrow majority with 176 of the 349 seats. Speaking after her win, Vikhe Patil said it felt good to be part of the Riksdag and that she was looking forward to contributing to both the city and the country. “I would like to be a voice for those who cannot vote,” she said, adding that she wants to help build “a society where every child gets a chance for a good future,” and stressed the need for “a habitable planet with clean water, living nature, and as few human-caused natural disasters as possible.”
Vikhe Patil has deep roots in Indian politics despite building her career in Sweden. She is the great-granddaughter of Vithalrao Vikhe Patil, who founded Asia’s first cooperative sugar factory, and the granddaughter of the late Union minister Balasaheb Vikhe Patil. Her uncle, Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil, currently serves as a minister in Maharashtra. Born in Sweden, she spent her early childhood years in Ahmednagar before returning to Sweden, where she went on to study at the Gothenburg School of Business.
Her political career has been built almost entirely within Sweden’s Green movement — she has been an active party member for 25 years, holding roles across the Young Greens, Gröna Studenter, and the Gothenburg and Stockholm branches of the party, alongside a stint on Stockholm’s Election Committee. She previously served on the Stockholm City Council and, notably, worked as an adviser in the Prime Minister’s Office during Stefan Löfven’s premiership — giving her governing experience well before this parliamentary win.
Despite her long years abroad, Vikhe Patil spoke warmly of her Indian ties after the results came in, saying she loves India dearly and misses her grandfather, adding that she hopes “to make my grandfather proud.”
Her election adds a notable name to the small but growing list of Indian-origin politicians who have found electoral success in European legislatures, and marks a personal milestone for a family already well known in Maharashtra’s political landscape — this time carried onto Scandinavian soil.
