Parliament of Denmark Folketinget (Danish) | |
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| 72nd Folketing | |
 | |
| Type | |
| Type | |
| Leadership | |
Deputy Speakers | |
| Structure | |
| Seats | 179 |
 | |
Political groups | Government (85)[1]
Supported by (5)[a]
Opposition (89)
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| Elections | |
| Openlistproportional representation through theD'Hondt method with a 2%election threshold in constituencies SeeElections in Denmark | |
Last election | 1 November 2022 |
Next election | On or before 31 October 2026 |
| Meeting place | |
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| Folketingssalen,Christiansborg Palace, Copenhagen | |
| Website | |
thedanishparliament | |
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TheFolketing (Danish:Folketinget[ˈfʌlkəˌtsʰe̝ŋˀð̩],lit. 'The people'sthing' or'People's assembly'), also known as theParliament of Denmark or theDanish Parliament in English,[5] is theunicameralnational legislature (parliament) of theKingdom of Denmark —Denmark proper together with theFaroe Islands andGreenland. Established in 1849, the Folketing was thelower house of thebicameral parliament called theRigsdag until 1953; theupper house was theLandsting.
The Folketing meets inChristiansborg Palace, on the islet ofSlotsholmen in centralCopenhagen. It passes all laws, approves thecabinet, and supervises the work of the government. It is also responsible for adopting the state's budgets and approving the state's accounts. As set out in theConstitution of Denmark, the Folketing shares power with the reigningmonarch. But in practice, the monarch's role is limited to signing laws passed by the legislature; this must be done within 30 days of adoption.
The Folketing consists of179 members; including two fromGreenland and two from theFaroe Islands.General elections must be held every four years, but it is within the powers of theprime minister to ask the monarch to call for an election before the term has elapsed. On avote of no confidence, the Folketing may force a single minister or the entire government to resign.[6]
Members are democratically elected byproportional representation: 135 directly inconstituencies using theD'Hondt method, alongside 40leveling seats. The Danish political system has traditionally generated coalitions. Most post-war governments have been minority coalitions ruling with the support of non-government parties.[7] The first sitting of the house is usually attended bythe king.[8]
From 1849 to 1953 theFolketing was one of the two houses in thebicameral parliament known as theRigsdag; the other house was known asLandstinget. The difference between the houses was its size, voter representation, and electoral system.
The Folketing was elected by common vote among men and consisted mainly of independent farmers, traders, and merchants as well as the educated classes. From 1866 to 1915 the right to vote for theLandsting was restricted to the wealthiest, and some of its members were appointed by the king; so it predominantly represented the landed gentry and other conservatives. From 1915 both men and women had the right of vote for both houses, and the Landsting was elected by common vote, although indirectly and with a higher age limit than for the Folketing. During the next decades, law-making mainly took place in the Folketing, and the Landsting came to be regarded as a superfluous rubber stamp.
In 1953 a revised constitution was adopted bya referendum. Among the changes was the elimination of the Landsting and the introduction of aunicameral parliament, known only as the Folketing.Christiansborg Palace (also known by its nicknameBorgen, Danish forthe castle) has been the domicile of parliament since 1849. The palace is in the heart ofCopenhagen.[citation needed]
Gaining representation in parliament normally requires only 2% of the national vote. With such a lowelection threshold a large number of parties are represented in the chamber, making it all but impossible for one party to win the 90 seats necessary for a majority. No single party has achieved this since 1901. All Danish governments since then have been coalitions or one-partyminority governments. The constitution allows a government to take office without getting a vote of confidence and stay in office as long as it does not lose avote of no confidence. One consequence is that, unlike in most other parliamentary systems, most Danish governments in modern times are not assured that their legislative agendas will pass, forcing them to assemble a majority for each individual piece of legislation.
The 179 members of the folketing are directly elected to four-year terms, subject to calls for early elections. All Danish citizens 18 years or older may vote in legislative elections, which are conducted by secret ballot.Folketing seats are allocated among the various parties using theD'Hondt method of party listproportional representation. A party or electoral alliance must pass the election threshold of 2% of the overall vote to be allocated a seat.
 | This section needs to beupdated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information.(April 2016) |
The Danish political system is characterised by afusion of powers, with the government being drawn from the ranks of the Folketing. Denmark is governed by a cabinet and a prime minister who do not have a majority in the Folketing against them (negative parliamentarism).[12] Since no single party in Denmark has had an absolute majority in the Folketing since 1903, in order to pass laws, the prime minister must form alliances with parties outside his or her own party. This either results in acoalition cabinet of multiple parties, or a single-party minority government.
During his first term in 2009 to 2011,Lars Løkke Rasmussen led a centre-right minority government consisting of the Liberal Party (Venstre) and theConservative People's Party. This coalition government worked with regular parliamentary support from thenational conservativeDanish People's Party and often gained the necessary 90th seat for majority in the Folketing through negotiations with either the sole MP from theChristian Democrats, Ørum-Jørgensen[13] or another MP outside parties, Christmas Møller, both elected in 2007 as conservative MPs and having defected since then.
Since the2007 elections, theLiberal Alliance (previously Ny Alliance) gained momentum in opinion polls, and since early 2010 the governing coalition have not been able to gather a majority in the polls without the support of the Alliance. The continuing rise in the polls is to an extent the result of the internal crisis in the Conservative People's Party over the leadership ofLene Espersen[14] and the continuing debate over a lack of "true" liberal/conservative ideology in government policy.[15]
On 13 January 2011 the continuing turmoil in the Conservative group in the Folketing caused Lene Espersen to resign as political leader of the party and focus on her role asMinister of Foreign Affairs.[16] A leadership election betweenBrian Mikkelsen, theMinister of Economic and Business Affairs andLars Barfoed, theJustice Minister, was widely expected,[17] but on 14 January the Conservative group in the Folketing unanimously elected Barfoed as their new political leader.[18]
TheSocial Democrats under the leadership ofHelle Thorning-Schmidt have enjoyed continuing majorities in opinion polls since late 2009 and hope to form a centre-left government coalition consisting of theSocialist People's Party and theSocial Liberal Party with parliamentary support from the smallRed-Green Alliance.[19][20]
BothMargrethe Vestager (Social Liberal Party) andVilly Søvndal (Socialist People's Party) pledged their support to Thorning-Schmidt before the 2011 election.[21] But there has been considerable debate about the future politics of this coalition, mainly because the Social Liberal Party demands a moreliberal economic agenda. Also on immigration issues there are political differences between the three coalition parties. This has led some observers to believe that the Social Liberal Party will not join a government coalition but instead opt to be a part of the parliamentary support of a new, centre-left government.[22] In the event the Social Liberals did join the new three-party coalition government formed on 3 October.
Following the2015 general election, Thorning-Schmidt was replaced as prime minister by her predecessor Lars Løkke Rasmussen. Until 28 November 2016,[23] he led a government consisting only of Venstre—a very unusual situation in Danish politics.
The Speaker is thepresiding officer of the Folketing. The Speaker determines which members may speak, and is responsible for maintaining order during debates. The position was created in 1850, and the inaugural holder of the office wasCarl Christoffer Georg Andræ. The current Speaker isSøren Gade ofVenstre.[24] The Speaker and four Deputy Speakers are elected by MPs at the opening of parliament after each general election and compose presidium of the body.[25]
| Position | Member | Party |
|---|---|---|
| President | Søren Gade | Venstre |
| First Deputy Speaker | Leif Lahn Jensen | Social Democrats |
| Second Deputy Speaker | Jeppe Søe | Moderates |
| Third Deputy Speaker | Karsten Hønge | Green Left |
| Fourth Deputy Speaker | Karina Adsbøl | Denmark Democrats |
The members of parliament are allocated intothirty standing parliamentary committees. The standing committees have a portfolio that covers that of one or moregovernment ministers.[26]
Although Denmark is arepresentative democracy, a bias is seen in the demographics of the Folketing as opposed to thedemographics of Denmark, with middle-aged men over-represented, the Folketing is therefore not a direct representation of the country.
About one-third of seats have been switched for new members every election, a figure that has stayed more or less constant over previous elections. The largest change in these figures was seen in the election of 1973, where 45 percent of seats saw new members, and the lowest change was in the election of 1988, when 14.8 percent of members were newcomers.[27]
Since theincorporation of women into the Folketing in 1915, a general rise in the seats held by women has been observed. In the most recent election in 2022, 78 of 179 seats were held by women.
| Election year | Female members[28] | Percent change | Percentage of Folketing |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1957 | 15 | - | 8,4% |
| 1960 | 17 | +13.3% | 9,5% |
| 1964 | 17 | +0.0% | 9,5% |
| 1966 | 19 | +11.8% | 10,6% |
| 1968 | 19 | +0.0% | 10,6% |
| 1971 | 30 | +57.9% | 16,8% |
| 1973 | 27 | −10.0% | 15,1% |
| 1975 | 28 | +3.7% | 15,6% |
| 1977 | 30 | +7.1% | 16,8% |
| 1979 | 42 | +40.0% | 23,5% |
| 1981 | 42 | +0.0% | 23,5% |
| 1984 | 47 | +11.9% | 26,3% |
| 1987 | 52 | +10.6% | 29,1% |
| 1988 | 52 | 0.0% | 29,1% |
| 1990 | 59 | +13.5% | 33,0% |
| 1994 | 59 | +0.0% | 33,0% |
| 1998 | 67 | +13.6% | 37,4% |
| 2001 | 68 | +1.5% | 38,0% |
| 2005 | 66 | −2.9% | 36,9% |
| 2007 | 67 | +1.5% | 37,4% |
| 2011 | 70 | +4.5% | 39,1% |
| 2015 | 67 | −4.3% | 37,4% |
| 2019 | 70 | +4.5% | 39,1% |
| 2022 | 78 | +11.4% | 43,6% |
Between 1918 and 1920 the Folketing had 140 seats, this was then increased to 149. The number was increased to 179 in 1953, which it remains to this day.
Jon Stephensen siger, at han vil stemme med SVM-regeringen langt hen ad vejen, men han vil ikke love, at han vil stemme med regeringen hver gang.
En regering må ikke have et flertal imod sig.
Media related toFolketinget at Wikimedia Commons| Løgting elections | |
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| Referendums | |
See also:Elections and referendums in Denmark | |
| Parliamentary elections | |
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| European elections | |
| Local elections | |
| Referendums | |
See also:Elections and referendums in Denmark | |
National legislative bodies of theNordic countries | ||
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| Geographic | |
55°40′34″N12°34′47″E / 55.67611°N 12.57972°E /55.67611; 12.57972
