Overview
- Mette Frederiksen, who resigned to the monarch Wednesday, moved into formal talks after Tuesday’s election left the left bloc on 84 seats to the right’s 77, with the Moderates on 14 holding the balance.
- The Social Democrats won 21.8% and 38 seats, their weakest parliamentary result since 1903, even as they remain the largest party in the Folketing.
- The Moderates led by Lars Løkke Rasmussen are the kingmakers, and Venstre’s leader Troels Lund Poulsen said he will not return to a left-led coalition, signaling a harder path to a deal for Frederiksen.
- The Danish People’s Party rose to about 9.1% of the vote, roughly tripling its support, after a campaign where most parties backed tougher immigration rules in a country already known for strict policies.
- The palace will appoint a negotiator to steer talks that could run for weeks, and analysts say a deal with the Moderates on the left would push climate and water-quality policy higher, while a tilt right would put immigration back at the forefront.