Head down and hands stuffed in his pockets, the leader of Sweden’s nationalist party rolls nervously back and forth on the balls of his feet as he waits backstage at a rally in the working-class town of Motala. 

As his name is called he jolts into action, strutting onto the stage to roaring applause, wearing a headset microphone and a broad grin.

Jimmie Akesson is the fresh new face of Sweden Democrats, a party with roots in neo-Nazi movements that is set to make huge gains in elections this Sunday.

According to the some polls, the nationalists could take up to 25 per cent of the vote, making them a potential kingmaker in coalition talks with the country’s centre-right parties.

The Sweden Democrats…