Denmark calls election as PM leverages Greenland crisis boost

Denmark will hold a parliamentary election on 24 March, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen announced on Thursday (26 February), as she seeks to capitalise on a surge in support for her defiant stance against U.S. pressure over Greenland.

Frederiksen has spent recent months rallying European leaders in response to renewed interest from U.S. President Donald Trump in annexing the Arctic island.

Opinion polls suggest the effort has boosted her popularity, despite public dissatisfaction over rising living costs and pressure on the welfare system.

“This will be a decisive election, because it will be in the next four years that we, as Danes and as Europeans, will truly have to stand on our own feet,” Frederiksen said.

“We must define our relationship with the United States, and we must rearm to ensure peace on our continent.”

Domestic record also in focus

The Greenland crisis has further raised Frederiksen’s international profile, building on the standing she gained through her swift response to the Covid-19 pandemic and her efforts to secure European support for Ukraine.

• Why Greenland matters: Geography, security and financial value
• Is the row over Greenland testing NATO unity and Europe’s Arctic role?

The election will test whether voters reward her international leadership and defence of Danish sovereignty, or punish her government for what critics describe as inattention to domestic challenges.

“Trust in Mette Frederiksen as a leader and her ability to navigate the Greenland and Ukraine crises will be central to the campaign,” political commentator Joachim B. Olsen said.

Denmark’s government is an unusual cross-party coalition comprising Frederiksen’s Social Democrats, the centre-right Liberal Party led by Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen, and the Moderates, led by Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen, who has twice served as prime minister.

Formed in 2022 as a crisis administration, the coalition is at risk of losing its majority, according to opinion polls, as parties reposition themselves along more traditional left-right lines.

The Social Democrats suffered a significant setback in the 2025 municipal elections, losing the Copenhagen mayoralty for the first time in 87 years.

While the party’s support fell to 17% in December polls, it has since recovered to 22%, with Frederiksen’s approval ratings lifted by her handling of the Greenland dispute. In the 2022 general election, the party won 28% of the vote.

Political scientist Rune Stubager said voters remain concerned about food prices, welfare, inequality and immigration.

The Green Left party, a traditional ally of the Social Democrats that is currently in opposition, has pledged to reinstate the public holiday if elected - a proposal the Social Democrats have not ruled out.

Frederiksen’s party is also expected to highlight its strict immigration policies, a stance that contributed to its 2019 election victory. In January, the government proposed easing deportation rules for foreign nationals, acknowledging a potential clash with European human rights frameworks.

Tags

Denmark Mette Frederiksen Danish election Greenland crisis Donald Trump NATO Ukraine War defence spending European security