Copenhagen, Denmark — Danish voters headed to the polls in a general election on Tuesday, with Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen seeking a third term at the helm of the Scandinavian country after a standoff with the US president. donald trump On the future of the state’s semiautonomous region greenland.
More than 4.3 million people are eligible to have their say in voting for the new Folketing, or parliament, in Copenhagen, which is elected for a four-year term.
frederiksen Elections were called last monthShe was visiting the country several months ago, apparently hoping that her steadfast image in the crisis over Greenland would help her with voters in the EU and NATO member country.
In his second term, his support declined due to rising costs of living – something which, along with pensions and a potential wealth tax, has been a major campaign issue.
The 48-year-old center-left Social Democrat is known for her strong support ukraine In his defense against Russian aggression and for his restrictive approach to migration – continuing a tradition in Danish politics that has now lasted for two decades.
To counter pressure from the right and point to a potential increase in migration due to the Iran war, Frederiksen announced proposals this month that include a possible “emergency brake” on asylum and tighter controls on criminals lacking legal residency. His government had already unveiled plans to allow deportation of foreigners Those who have been sentenced to at least one year in prison for serious crimes.
Two center-right challengers hope to unseat Frederiksen as prime minister. Their current government consists of one Defense Minister, Troels Lund Poulsen, of the Liberal or Venstre Party, who led several recent administrations.
The other is Alex Vanopslagh, 34, of the opposition Liberal Alliance, who demands lower taxes and less bureaucracy, and calls on Denmark to refuse to use nuclear power. But Wanopslagh’s recent admission of taking cocaine during his early years as party leader has harmed his prospects.
Further to the right, the anti-immigration Danish People’s Party looks well positioned to make a comeback in 2022 after a very weak showing in the last election.
No single party is expected to come close to winning a majority. Denmark’s system of proportional representation typically forms coalition governments, traditionally composed of several parties from a “red block” on the left or a “blue block” on the right, after several weeks of negotiations.
Frederickson’s outgoing three-party administration was the first to overcome political division in decades. It remains to be seen whether this election will have a repeat outcome, with Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen’s centrist Moderate Party potentially playing the role of kingmaker.
Greenland, which has taken up much of the government’s energy in recent months, has not been a key issue in the campaign because there is widespread consensus on its place in the state.
Frederiksen warned in January that a US occupation of Greenland would be tantamount to end of nato. But the crisis has subsided, at least for now.
after Trump retreated Over threats to impose tariffs on Denmark and other European countries that objected to the US taking control of the vast Arctic island, the US, Denmark and Greenland. Started technical talks On the Arctic Security Agreement.
Denmark’s unicameral parliament has 179 seats. Of those, 175 go to MPs from Denmark itself and two each to representatives of sparsely populated Greenland and the kingdom’s other semiautonomous territory, the Faroe Islands.
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Molson reported from Berlin.
