Denmark election: Social Democrats win as PM concedes defeat

[Eugene]

Source: BBC

3 hours ago

Denmark's Liberal Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen has conceded victory in the country's general election, paving the way for Social Democrat leader Mette Frederiksen to take power.

"We had a really good election, but there will be a change of government," the prime minister told supporters.

The Social Democrats won 91 of the 179 seats in parliament.

At 41, Ms Frederiksen is set to be the country's youngest ever prime minister.

-snip-


Read more: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-48535939

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Mette Frederiksen's Social Democrats have promised to put money into the country's cherished welfare system (EPA)

[burrowowl]

1. Yay Denmark!

[YOHABLO]

2. Syntax is important: 'Dem Socialism' vs 'Social Dem'? Progressives in U.S. should clarify.

What Progressives and those on the left are really trying to achieve in the U.S., is a 'Social Democratic' society. IMO

[Hortensis]

10. Yes. Of course "social democratic society" could take

various forms. It would be better if more actually knew what they were fighting for before the revolution. Against is easy, they oppose the corrupt elite establishment, most immediately the Democratic Party, of course. But wannabe revolutionaries who don't know where they're going usually end up where they never had any intention of being.

[TomVilmer]

3. The Social Democrats DID NOT win 91 of the 179 seats in parliament

The Social Democrats won 48 of the 179 seats in parliament. But together with two other left leaning parties and one more to the center, they could make a majority government with 91 of the seats.

There will be a change of government, but not very much. Most of the the political parities of Denmark (13 at this election!) had decided, that at strict and brutal policy against foreigners was necessary to win the election. And the Social Democrats made a lot of binding agreements with the farmers and the far right party to solidify this.
https://bnn-news.com/anti-migration-promises-pave-way-for-denmark-s-social-democrats-victory-201665
https://www.economist.com/europe/2019/06/04/under-left-or-right-denmark-will-get-ever-tougher-with-migrants

Eight years ago we had them in government, also with a female prime minister and all. They did little to change Denmark's role as a militant nation, following United States into wars. The path to a change is not really visible, but I will as always hope for the better!
https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1130297/russia-vladimir-putin-arctic-denmark-Claus-Hjort-Frederiksen-WW3

[oldsoftie]

4. "Denmark's role as a militant nation". HAHAHAHAHAHA!

If only we could have more nations as "militant" as DENMARK

[TomVilmer]

6. Denmark is "only" as militant as the United States...

... since my country joins any silly war they are invited to. Compared to our tiny size Denmark has been bombing wildly away at the Balkans in 1990ies, since the very first attack at Afghanistan and still in Iraq. Denmark attacked Libya from the air with 923 bombs - and then the same in Syria. But I do agree that the United States is much worse .

[TomVilmer]

8. After the WW2 Denmark had 250.000 refugees...

... isolated in camps. Now a few thousands seems to be a catastrophe.

Since your estimate of "half of Africa and the Middle East that would love to parachute into the good life there with all its benefits" is not based on any kind of statistics or reality I will leave it hanging, while you check your "data" a bit better. You could also check which Scandinavian country has the best economic growth rate - it is not Denmark.

[oldsoftie]

5. She's actually pulled the party more to the right, certainly a more "right" stance on immigration.

Still to the left economically though.
“For me, it is becoming increasingly clear that the price of unregulated globalisation, mass immigration and the free movement of labour is paid for by the lower classes,” she said in a recent biography.

Denmark’s current right-wing coalition government last year enacted the most anti-immigration legislation in Danish history and, rather than position her party in stark opposition, Frederikson has embraced much of it.

Under her leadership, the SD have called for a cap on “non-western immigrants”, for asylum seekers to be expelled to a reception centre in North Africa, and for all immigrants to be forced to work 37 hours a week in exchange for benefits.

[Hortensis]

9. She apparently put a hole in the RW populist balloon by

giving people worried about too much immigration an alternative. Democracy in action. As the climate crisis worsens, the forces shifting the left farther right socially in many nations sure aren't going to ease any time soon and will probably get much worse in most. Hopefully these constraints on immigration will calm anxiety enough to avoid further shifts right.

Our DIL is Danish, now with dual American citizenship, and has always comforted herself that she could take all of us to Denmark if it came to it. I'm not nearly so sure. That door also would be one vote away from closing due to the same kind of pressures, even if we would be "western" immigrants.

[Hortensis]

11. Their Social Dems are most analogous to our liberal Democratic Party.

In spite of its misleading label, Sanders and his capital-P Progressives would of course strongly oppose the most powerful liberal party.

Those sincerely farther left might belong to the Red-Green Alliance, who also feel winning their class struggle requires revolution. There are lots of parties to choose from, though. His more conservative populists might choose one of the many RW populist groups that have sprung up. Or who knows? Sanders might be able to pull together the kind of LW populist/socialist alliance he has here in one minority party or another.