DANISH Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has submitted her government’s resignation to the king after her three-party coalition suffered a large defeat in a general election, the royal palace said in a statement.
Parties are set to launch potentially tough and long negotiations on Wednesday to determine whether the next government will be formed by Frederiksen or another party leader.
Frederiksen’s Social Democratic Party had its worst election since 1903 on Tuesday, winning just 38 seats in the 179-seat parliament – down from 50 four years ago – amid voter concerns over immigration, a cost-of-living crisis and welfare.
Her left-wing bloc won 84 seats in parliament, versus 77 for the right-leaning parties, with both sides falling short of the 90 needed for a majority.
That leaves both sides dependent on the 14 seats won by the unaligned Moderates Party of Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen, a centrist group that could emerge as kingmakers in coalition talks.
The Social Democrats remains Denmark’s biggest party, however, with 21.9 percent support, meaning Frederiksen could return for a third term as prime minister following coalition talks.
Domestic policy issues overshadowed the support for Frederiksen’s defiant stance towards United States President Donald Trump’s repeated ambitions to acquire Denmark’s semi-autonomous territory, Greenland.
Frederiksen warned in January that a US takeover of Greenland would amount to the end of NATO.
