Fredrik Vilhelm Thorsson

In 1889, Thorsson was employed by the Social Democratic Party in southern Sweden as an agitator, and proved to be quite talented. In 1897 he campaigned against C. G. Ekman, which resulted in several trade unions affiliating themselves with the social democratic movement.

Thorsson was elected to the Lower House of the then bicameral Parliament of Sweden in 1902, and was regarded as the most radical of the Social Democrats. In the parliament he won a debate against the State Committee, a powerful group in the bicameral parliament, regarding the sale of state property. In 1909 he became a member of the State Committee, then headed by Karl Staaf, with special responsibility for the military defence, and was also appointed Deputy Chairman of the Parliamentary Trustees. In contrast to other left-wing politicians in the parliamentary group, he was positive to the military defence. He was a member of the State Committee until 1917. In 1914 he became a member of the governing board of the Swedish National Bank and re-elected in 1917. In 1918, he became Minister for Finance in Nils Edén's cabinet, a coalition between Liberals and Social Democrats, when Hjalmar Branting had resigned as Minister for Finance. He then implemented a budget reform and drafted proposals for council tax reforms.

In March 1920, the coalition government was dissolved when Thorsson could not agree with the Liberals in the government on municipal taxes. In Branting's first cabinet, he became the first Minister of Commerce and Industry, heading the newly created Ministry of Commerce and Industry for a few months in 1920. He was then appointed Minister for Finance in Branting's second cabinet in 1921. The cabinet dissolved itself in April 1923, when the Upper House would not accept a proposal regarding unemployment support.

Thorsson again became Minister for Finance in Branting's third cabinet in October 1924. When Branting died in February 1925, Thorsson was, according to some sources elected chairman of the Social Democratic party, but he was not officially recognised as such before falling ill and dying in May of that year. Ernst Wigforss in his memoirs states that Thorsson firmly believed that Rickard Sandler, who had served as prime minister since Branting fell ill in January, was the most suitable candidate for party chairman. Thorsson was succeeded as finance minister by Ernst Wigforss, and Per Albin Hansson became party chairman.

• Ström, Fredrik (1949). Skomakaren som blev kungens skattmästare: F. V. Thorsson. Deras liv blev bragd, 99-2921440-2 ; 19 (in Swedish). Stockholm: Sv. missionsförb. 1458905.
• Wigforss, Ernst (1950–1954). Minnen (in Swedish). Stockholm: Tiden. 452589.
• Dahl Torsten, Bohman Nils, ed. (1954). Svenska män och kvinnor: biografisk uppslagsbok. 7, Sibylla-Tjällgren (in Swedish). Stockholm: Bonnier. 53806.