Denmark’s bullish foreign minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen, with his signature pipe and Churchillian scowl, has emerged as kingmaker for Copenhagen’s next coalition government.
The 61-year-old leader of the centrist Moderates holds the balance of power after Tuesday’s snap general election saw the Social Democrats of prime minister Mette Frederiksen score their worst election result since 1903.
Her party took 38 seats, down from 50 four years ago, as concerns over immigration, the cost of living and even pig castration dominated the campaign more than January’s Greenland crisis.
Though Frederiksen’s leftist so-called red grouping in parliament still finished seven seats ahead of the right-wing blue camp, each side fell short of the 90 seats needed for a majority.
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The centrist Moderates, not part of either camp, are now in unique position, with their 14 seats, to dictate the course – and priorities – of any future government.
Of three possible outcomes, a return of the outgoing coalition – headed by Frederiksen in her third term – is, she said, the “most realistic” option.
On Wednesday morning Frederiksen tendered her resignation to King Frederik, in line with protocol. After preliminary talks with all parties, she returned to Amalienborg palace in the afternoon where the king tasked her with exploring a new majority in the new 12-party Folketing parliament.
In advance of what are likely to be challenging coalition talks, the 48-year-old, whose snap election bet failed to pay off on Tuesday, said she had “expected to lose support, because that’s pretty much normal when you seek re-election for the third time”.
In remarks that were as much a nod to her outgoing coalition partners as supporters, she added: “Denmark needs a stable government. A competent government. We’re ready to take the lead.”
[ Danish premier’s party wins election vote but suffers worst result since 1903Opens in new window ]
Rasmussen, a 61-year-old political veteran who served twice as prime minister in the last two decades, has urged a continuation of the outgoing coalition but demanded Frederiksen’s party “come down from the trees” to back a more centrist political platform.
After four decades in politics, Rasmussen has begun to develop a cult following as a wily operator who cultivates a man-of-the-people image.
He claimed to be “caffeine resistant” in a recent interview, claiming coffee and cigarettes in bed were his favoured cold remedy.
Rasmussen remains the key negotiating figure with Washington in the unresolved Greenland crisis.
The third key component of any coalition stool is likely to be Liberal leader Troels Lund Poulsen, outgoing defence minister. He has ruled out co-operating further with Frederiksen, not for the first time, and the historic election low of 10.1 per cent for his Liberals is likely to concentrate minds as talks begin.
With a turnout of 84 per cent, the other big winner of the election was Denmark’s far-right Danish People’s Party (DF), which tripled its vote to 9.1 per cent or 16 mandates.
The party has been in decline since Frederiksen became prime minister in 2019, adopting tougher migration policies to reclaim the working-class voters who had drifted to the far-right.
The DF and its leader Morten Messerschmidt capitalised on growing cost-of-living concerns but are unlikely to play any role in coalition talks or the future government.
Messerschmidt told election party supporters his party was already working towards power at the next poll, due in 2030.
Meanwhile Greenland’s pro-independence Naleraq party won its first seat in the Danish general election after doubling its vote to 24.6 per cent on the Arctic island – for centuries part of the kingdom of Denmark.
“It’s a very clear signal that the status quo is not acceptable,” said Qarsoq Høegh-Dam, the new Naleraq MP in the Folketing, where two seats are reserved for Greenland and two for the Faroe Islands.
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