On 6 June 2019, he resigned from his position as prime minister aftera general election, in which his government was defeated. However, he continued to lead a caretaker government until a new government was formed and sworn in. This was completed on 27 June 2019 and Rasmussen was succeeded as prime minister byMette Frederiksen. He resigned as the chairman of Venstre in August 2019, and left the party in January 2021.[1] He subsequently formed theModerates, which campaigned on ending bloc politics, and won 16 seats in the2022 Danish general election.[2][3]
Lars Løkke Rasmussen served as chairman of theyouth branch ofVenstre from 1986 to 1989. One of his initiatives was to establish an alternative toOperation Dagsværk — an annual one day fundraising campaign by high school students collecting money for third world countries — sinceOperation Dagsværk at the time was spearheaded by members of the Danish Communist Youth.[7] Rasmussen's campaign was supported by the party youth branch, and raised 600,000DKK which were spent on school equipment[7] inSovietoccupied Afghanistan. Lars Løkke Rasmussen led a Danish delegation to Afghanistan delivering the collected funds, and a photograph taken by photographerJørn Stjerneklar shows him and two other delegation members disguised as Afghans. Another photo shows him holding anAK-47, while standing together with threeMujahideen.[8] The photos have generated a lot of media attention in Denmark, after the Danish participation in thewar in Afghanistan and especially as Rasmussen moved up the rankings at Venstre.[citation needed]
Lars Løkke Rasmussen served as Interior and Health Minister between 2001 and 2007 until he was appointed Minister of Finance in 2007. He was responsible for negotiating a 2002 agreement betweenVenstre, theConservatives, theSocial Democrats and theDanish People's Party giving patients in public hospitals the right to select aprivate hospital, provided that the public hospital had been unable to treat the patient within two months. In 2007, this time limit was lowered to one month. Since 2002, the government has awarded extra funds earmarked at reducing the waiting list at National Health Service hospitals, a grant sometimes referred to by the media asLøkkeposen[9] (A pun on 'lykkepose' the Danish word for a goodie bag). He also represented the government during negotiations regarding a reform of the system by which richer municipalities transfer part of their tax incomes to poorer municipalities.
After then Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen won his second reelection in 2007 he created his third cabinet in which Lars Løkke Rasmussen was appointed Minister of Finance. This was seen as a clear indicator that Rasmussen was next in line to follow Fogh as leader of Venstre and prime minister, when Fogh would leave Danish politics.[11]As Finance Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen led the negotiations concerning funds to banks affected by the2008 financial crisis.
In February 2009, Lars Løkke Rasmussen was the chief negotiator in the political agreement behind a major tax reform, implementing the government's ambition of reducing income tax and increasing taxes on pollution.[12] The reform was, according to Lars Løkke Rasmussen, the biggest reduction of themarginal tax rate since the introduction of theincome tax in 1903.[13] The opposition accused it of being historically skewed in favouring those with high-income jobs and giving very little to those with low-income jobs.[13]
Rasmussen outsideAmalienborg Palace immediately after his appointment as Prime Minister by Queen Margrethe.
On 4 April 2009,NATO decided that Prime MinisterAnders Fogh Rasmussen would replaceJaap de Hoop Scheffer asSecretary General of NATO.[14] On the same day, Anders Fogh Rasmussen declared that he would resign as prime minister on 5 April 2009. As deputy of the largest party in the government, Lars Løkke Rasmussen thus took over the post as Prime Minister of Denmark.[15] An opinion poll released on the day of Lars Løkke Rasmussen's takeover revealed that Danes believed that he only beatHelle Thorning-Schmidt as the person best suited for lead Denmark during the2008 financial crisis, and that Thorning-Schmidt would have been better suited to combatting unemployment, reducing hospital waiting lists, securing the welfare society of the future, and representing Denmark internationally.[16] On 7 April 2009, Lars Løkke Rasmussen announced the new set of ministers inhis Cabinet.[17]
Lars Løkke Rasmussen has been sharply criticized from many sides for his handling of theCOP15 leadership.
At the first meeting of the summit high level section, led by Lars Løkke Rasmussen, a number of countries protested the Danish handling of the negotiations. "We cannot continue to talk about procedure. We must move forward. The World awaits us", said Lars Løkke Rasmussen responding to criticism of the Danish led negotiations coming from several countries who regarded them as undemocratic.[18]
Many developing countries viewed this statement as arrogant. Procedure is a major element in UN negotiations.[19] "This is not about procedure. This is about content. We have stated that the results in Copenhagen must come in two texts. One cannot simply present a text pulled from the clouds", replied the Chinese delegate in the auditorium.[18]
Stanislaus Lumumba Di-Aping, chief negotiator for the Developing Nations' organisationG77, cross examined what exactly Rasmussen meant when stating that the chairmen of the negotiating groups should be "people whom we trust".[19] Criticism of the Office of the Prime Minister was supported by China, India and Brazil. The last had been regarded as an ally by the Danish delegation.[19]
The international press, too, has been severe in its criticism of the Prime Minister and the Prime Minister's Office. The BBC's climate correspondent stated: "According to all my sources, the Prime Minister's Office is on the verge of a melt-down. They have no modus operandi, or the diplomatic experience needed to plan one in advance. Ed Miliband, the UKSecretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, was quoted for stating that "Denmark is doing a reasonable job".[19]
Lars Løkke Rasmussen and Russian PresidentDmitrij Medvedev in the Prime Minister's office atChristiansborg in Copenhagen, Denmark, 28 April 2010.
In May 2010 Rasmussen's government announced major spending cuts and measures designed to increase revenues, notably to unemployment insurance (cut from a maximum of four years to two), foreign aid (cut from 0.83% of GDP to 0.76%), cuts to child support payments, and miscellaneous tax reforms designed to increase revenues.[20] The cuts were designed to save the government 24 billion DKK.
Rasmussen ledVenstre in theSeptember 2011 parliamentary election. He sought to renew the mandate of theright-wing coalition that had been in power since2001. Although his party gained a seat, the opposition parties combined obtained more seats than the parties supporting the incumbent government. On 16 September 2011, Rasmussen tendered the government's resignation to Queen Margrethe. He remained in office as head of acaretaker government until his successor,Helle Thorning-Schmidt, was appointed on 3 October 2011.[citation needed]
Rasmussen with UK Prime MinisterTheresa May, Copenhagen, 10 October 2016Rasmussen with U.S. PresidentDonald Trump, Washington, D.C., 30 March 2017Rasmussen with Ukrainian Prime MinisterVolodymyr Groysman, Copenhagen, 26 June 2018
Rasmussen ledVenstre in theJune 2015 general election. His Blue Bloc won a tight election in which his party came third overall, winning Rasmussen the ability to form a government.[21]
All members of Lars Løkke Rasmussen's second Cabinet, composed solely of members of Venstre, were sworn in on 28 June 2015 in the Danish Parliament.[22] As of July 2015[update], his Cabinet consists of seventeen ministers.
Though Venstre made the largest gains of any party in the2019 general election, support for the Danish People's Party and Liberal Alliance collapsed, costing Rasmussen his majority. With the result beyond doubt on election night, Rasmussen conceded defeat to the "red bloc" under the Social Democrats'Mette Frederiksen.[26] On 6 June 2019, he announced his resignation. On 31 August 2019, Rasmussen resigned from his position as the chairman ofVenstre party following weeks of pressure from party members.[27]
The Moderates (Moderaterne) party, founded by Lars Løkke Rasmussen in 2021, was established to offer a new centrist-liberal alternative in response to political polarization in Denmark. Rasmussen drew inspiration from Sweden's Moderate Party as well as a fictional party featured in the television seriesBorgen.
In the 2022 general election, the Moderates secured 16 seats in the parliament with 9.3% of the vote, becoming the country's third-largest party and achieving significant success. During the election campaign, the party positioned itself outside the traditional red and blue blocs, taking on the role of a centrist "kingmaker." Throughout this period, Rasmussen emerged as a prominent political figure both as the leader of the Moderates and as the Minister of Foreign Affairs.[32]
Additionally:
The party's central goal is to end bloc politics and increase political consensus.
Rasmussen's personal political influence as party leader reignited discussions about personal leadership and charisma in Denmark during the 2022 election campaign.
Following the 2022 election results, the Moderates became part of a broad-based coalition government led by Mette Frederiksen, which was built upon the foundations of the red bloc and the liberal party Venstre.[32]
The Moderates have shifted the balance among traditional parties with their bloc-independent politics and pragmatic approach.
In summary, Rasmussen's Moderates quickly rose as a centrist, conciliatory, and bloc-independent alternative in Danish politics; the party's and Rasmussen's influence has been decisive both in the coalition government formation and in voter preferences.
Rasmussen speaking with US PresidentDonald Trump at theNATO summit in The Hague, 25 June 2025
In July 2024, he attended the2024 NATO Summit in Washington, D.C., where he met with Israeli Foreign MinisterIsrael Katz. They discussed the threat posed by Iran.[33]
Løkke Rasmussen and his Nordic counterparts signed a joint letter in late October 2024 condemning Israel's planned bill that would seek to ban theUNRWA from operating in the country and in effect the Palestinian areas. Furthermore, they urged theKnesset to reconsider passing the bill.[34]
After theUS strikes on Iranian nuclear sites in June 2025, Rasmussen said, "Iran must never develop nuclear weapons," and "the U.S. acted to prevent this." He urged the parties to return to negotiations to avoid further escalation.[35]
Rasmussen has on several occasions been accused of spending tax payer money on himself and his family. In the spring of 2008, he was accused by the media - essentially the Danish tabloidEkstra Bladet - of having charged his official accounts with considerable expenses he should have paid himself, e.g. restaurants, cigarettes, taxis, and hotels, both as county mayor[36] and as minister. All of this has been well documented, according to several independent media sources, although all charges were dropped and there was never a court trial.[37][38] It was something that was according to the rules of the partyVenstre.[39][40] In May 2007, Rasmussen was again accused by Ekstra Bladet of having his ministry pay for a hotel room in Copenhagen when he privately attended aPaul McCartney concert inHorsens in 2004.[41][42][43] Since the many serious scandals surrounding Rasmussen were brought to the attention of the public, Venstre has suffered in the polls.[44][45][46][47][48][49][50][51][52]
In 2013, theGlobal Green Growth Institute (GGGI) was criticized by two member countries for its financial management: Norway withheld $10 million in donations, citing excessive spending on flights and food by GGGI former Council Chairman Lars Løkke Rasmussen, and both Norway and Denmark demanded an Audit of the organization's finances before renewing support for 2014. Rasmussen was, as the chairman, accused of being greedy, while the other members of GGGI were not accused.[53]
In 2018, Rasmussen's wife Sólrun Løkke Rasmussen, facing termination from her job as a teacher, was called to a meeting with the head of the school where she worked. Rasmussen, as his wife's civil assessor, accompanied her to the meeting, along with his bodyguards. His wife was fired at the meeting. The case resulted in criticism as Rasmussen's presence, as then-Prime Minister, could be perceived as inappropriate pressure on the school leader; for meetings of this sort, it is usually theunion representative that functions as the civil assessor.[54]
While prime minister, in response to calls from Greenland for a formal investigation into and an apology from the Danish government regarding the 1951Little Danes Experiment, where Inuit children were stolen from their families to be "re-educated" into Danish culture, Rasmussen refused to make an apology. Instead, he said that: "History cannot be changed. The government regards the colonial period as a closed part of our shared history. We must be pleased with the fact that times have changed."[55][56] Just as Rasmussen refused to apologise, so too did following prime ministers of Denmark, andHelle Thorning-Schmidt declined to participate in an investigation.[57] In 2019, two Greenlandic members of theFolketing made demands:Aaja Chemnitz Larsen (Inuit Ataqatigiit) demanded that an apology be made, and Ineqi Kielsen (Siumut) demanded that an investigating commission be made.[58] As a result of Kielsen's request, Rasmussen agreed with Greenlandic prime ministerKim Kielsen to create a commission, though he again refused to make an apology.[59]
In June 2025, a video tape was leaked byMads Brügger, revealing that Rasmussen offered former Moderate MPMike Fonseca about 370.000 Danish kroner in exchange for Fonseca leaving the Folketing and giving his mandate to the Moderate Party, after Fonseca was revealed to be in a relationship with a 15-year old girl.[60] Afterwards, chairman of the Citizens PartyLars Boje Mathiesen filed a motion of no confidence against Rasmussen, and Rasmussen was also reported to the Danish Police by lawyer Klaus Ewald.[61]
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