Danish Government
When discussing the Danish government, you have to address Queen Margrethe, Helle Thorning-Schmidt and the Folketing. The Danish government is a constitutional monarchy. Queen Margrethe holds the throne and is the official ruler of Denmark. Her position is mostly ceremonial, but her signature is required to pass new legislation. She has sat on the throne since 1972 and is a very beloved figure in Denmark. Rarely do you hear people saying anything negative about her. Her birthday is a very special day in Denmark and is celebrated throughout the land. See the video below for an insight into the Royal Family. Denmark is run by a single chamber parliament called the Folketing.
The Prime Minister leads the government and the Prime Minister is Helle Thorning-Schmidt from the Social Democratic party. She takes over from Lars Loekke Rasmussen of the Venstre (liberal) party, which has been in power for the past 10 years. Helle Thorning-Schmidt makes history as the first female prime minister of Denmark. She won the election on September 15, 2011 and has promised to make some changes in the government. There are 8 major political parties and they are aligned in two alliances: The Central Left Party and the Central Right Party. They break down like this for 2011. Central Left Party 1. Social Democrats have 44 seats. 2. Social Liberals have 17 seats. 3. Socialist People's Party have 16 seats. 4. Red-Green Alliance have 12 seats. Central Right Party 1. Liberals have 47 seats. 2. Danish People's Party have 22 seats. 3. Liberal Alliance have 9 seats. 4. Conservatives have 8 seats. Since the Central Left Alliance has more seats, they are the ruling party. And the party with the majority of seats, which is the Social Democrats, their leader holds the office of Prime Minister. The Social Democrats are the leading party and hold the most power in the Folketing.The Danes are very active in politics, and the voting rate is quite high compared to countries like the US and Britain. The voting age is 18 and many young people are very active in politics. It is not uncommon to find protesters in the streets, peaceful marches and banners being displayed. The Danes are vocal in their political beliefs and Danes are expected to be politically active - which they are! Here, you can learn more about the Danish Government. Please feel free to comment on this subjectDo you have a helpful tip or comment on this subject that you would like to share? Please leave comments below. |
