Politics News
Danish snap election leaves no majority as Frederiksen's party slumps to 21.9%
Denmark's early general election on Tuesday, March 24, produced no majority for either the left-leaning or the right-leaning bloc in the 179-seat parliament. The Associated Press, in a report carried by News4Jax, said Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen's Social Democrats won 21.9% of the vote, down from 27.5% in 2022, but remain the largest party by a wide margin. Her two outgoing government partners also lost ground. Frederiksen had called the vote in February, months ahead of schedule.
“Denmark needs a stable government, a competent government.” — Mette Frederiksen, via AP
Former prime minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen's centrist Moderates, with 14 seats, are now kingmakers; he urged rivals to “come and play with us.” Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen's Liberals have said they will not govern with the Social Democrats again. AP said cost of living, pensions and a possible wealth tax dominated the campaign, and that Greenland was not a major issue.
Euronews said Frederiksen had hoped her standoff with Donald Trump over Greenland would help her, that the left bloc won 84 seats and that she is ready to stay on. Pakistan's Jang led on the royal palace saying she “submitted her government's resignation to the king,” and reported that the Social Democrats won 38 seats, their worst result since 1903, with the blue bloc on 77. Negotiations were to begin on Wednesday.
How each outlet framed it
- Associated Press — a hung parliament, a centrist kingmaker and a campaign about living costs, not Greenland.
- Euronews — a gamble on the Greenland row that did not pay off at the ballot box.
- Jang — the formal resignation and difficult, lengthy talks ahead.
Where the numbers differ: Euronews gave the Social Democrats 21.9% in its text and 21.8% in its summary. Jang gave the left bloc 84 seats, matching Euronews, and the right 77.
What we don't know yet: Whether Frederiksen or another party leader will form the next government.