Green Left (Denmark)
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Green Left Socialistisk Folkeparti | |
---|---|
Abbreviation | SF F[a] |
Chairperson | Pia Olsen Dyhr |
Founder | Aksel Larsen |
Founded | 15 February 1959 |
Split from | Communist Party of Denmark |
Headquarters | Christiansborg Palace, Prins Jørgens Gård, 1240 Copenhagen |
Youth wing | Popular Socialist Youth of Denmark[1] |
Membership (2022) | 8,995[2] |
Ideology | Democratic socialism[3] Green politics[3][4] Popular socialism[5] |
Political position | Centre-left[6] to left-wing[7][8] |
European affiliation | European Green Party |
International affiliation | Global Greens (associate) |
European Parliament group | Greens–European Free Alliance |
Nordic affiliation | Nordic Green Left Alliance |
Colours | Red Green Pink (customary)[9][10][11] |
Folketing | 15 / 179[b] |
European Parliament | 2 / 14 |
Regions[12] | 14 / 205 |
Municipalities[13] | 168 / 2,436 |
Mayors | 2 / 98 |
Election symbol | |
F | |
Website | |
sf | |
The Green Left[14] (Danish: Socialistisk Folkeparti lit. 'Socialist People's Party', SF) is a democratic socialist political party in Denmark.[3]
History
1959–1969
The SF was founded on 15 February 1959 by Aksel Larsen, a former leader of the Communist Party of Denmark (DKP).[15] Larsen was removed from the ranks of the DKP for his criticism over the Soviet intervention in the Hungarian Revolution of 1956. Larsen and the new SF sought to form a third way between Denmark's United States-oriented social democracy and Soviet Union–oriented communism, which sought to combine democracy with socialism. He was joined by a large share of the members of the DKP. They all supported the idea of independence from the Soviet Union.[16]
In the
In the
1969–1991
In the
In
1991–2001
In 1991, Petersen stood down as party chairman; he was replaced by Holger K. Nielsen, who was – compared to the other candidate Steen Gade – closer to the party's socialist past.
In the
In
In the 2000 referendum on the euro, the SF was part of the successful "no" campaign.
In opposition, 2001–2011
In the
In 2004, the party's sole MEP again decided to sit with
In the
The election of Søvndal brought major changes to the party. Greater emphasis was placed on professionalism, the use of focus groups and a change in electoral strategy. The number of key issues was reduced to three to better penetrate in the media with fewer slogans.
In a 2006 internal referendum, 66% of the SF-members declared that the party should participate in the "yes"-camp in a referendum on the
In the
At the 2006 party congress, Søvndal took exception to anti-democratic groups, mostly
In 2008, SF voted in favour for the national budget for 2009. This was the first time the SF had voted in favour of a national budget by the Fogh cabinet. This was widely regarded as an attempt to disprove the frequent accusations of SF not being "economically responsible".
In government, 2011–2014
Before
Vilhelmsen never managed to provide stable leadership for the party however. In January 2014, the party left the coalition government over a dispute involving the sale of shares in the state-owned energy company DONG Energy to Goldman Sachs, stating that they would instead provide confidence and supply. Vilhelmsen and a considerable part of the party leadership subsequently resigned. Pia Olsen Dyhr was subsequently elected new chairman of the party.
Supporting the government, 2019–2022
The 2019 general election saw a victory for the 'red bloc' consisting of the Social Democrats, Social Liberals, SF, the Red-Green Alliance, the Faroese Social Democratic Party, and Siumut. SF received 7.7% of the vote, a 3.5% increase from 2015, netting them 14 seats. Following the results, Vice President Signe Munk stepped down to serve in the Folketing and Serdal Benli was elected to take Munk's place.[17]
Prior to the election, SF spoke with leader of the Social Democrats Mette Frederiksen and brought a list of policy demands. These included strong climate action and the abolishment of the cash assistance ceiling, though the latter was abandoned during negotiations.[18] Ultimately it was decided that the Social Democrats would form a one-party minority government supported by SF and the rest of the red bloc.
Return to opposition, 2022–present
The incumbent red bloc government won a narrow majority in the 2022 general election. However, both before and after the election, Prime Minister Frederiksen instead called for the formation of a unity government with the centre-right Liberal Party as well as the newly formed centrist Moderates.[19] The formation of this grand coalition would make SF the largest party in the opposition with 15 seats, an increase of one compared to the 2019 election.[20]
In 2022, the congress of the party voted for the official English name of the party to be "Green Left".[14]
Ideology and issues
SF's ideological base is socialism, inspired by green politics and democratic socialism.[21] The party sees a democratic-socialist Denmark as the end goal of its politics. The party is a strong supporter of feminism, human rights, the rights of minorities, and democracy. Other important issues for the SF are a globalization based on solidarity. To that extent, it seeks to reform the World Trade Organization, as well as environmental protection, and support feminism. The party is also critical of capitalism, with its principle program (adopted in 2012) arguing that
"Danish society is characterized by a capitalist structure. Capitalism has created increased prosperity and productivity, but it has also created great inequality and social injustice, where a wealthy minority has the decisive control over the economy and production, and where many people are excluded and have no influence over their own lives. The main driving force in capitalist society is the private pursuit of profit, which entails a continuous risk of crises and puts constant pressure on society's social cohesion and natural foundations. The crises are further exacerbated by a wildly growing, detached financial sector, which becomes a drag on the productive sector. Globalization contains enormous opportunities, but also an unregulated capitalism that creates a casino economy where large banks and finance houses create financial instability. SF works for a regulation of international capital flows and multinational companies."[22]
The European Union
Historically, the
International comparison
This article possibly contains original research. (November 2007) |
The SF is a Nordic Green Left party like the Swedish Left Party, the Norwegian Socialist Left Party, the Finnish Left Alliance, and the Icelandic Left-Green Movement. These were also influenced by feminism and green politics in the 1970s and 1980s. Similar parties in Western Europe were the French Unified Socialist Party and the Dutch Pacifist Socialist Party.
Relationships to other parties
The SF has good relationships with the Social Liberal Party and the Social Democrats who, in the past, have cooperated in minority governments supported from the outside by the SF, although now the party is in opposition to a centrist government.
International organizations
SF is a member of the
Organization
The Green Left has a strong grass-roots organization: All members can participate in the
Election results
Parliament
Year | Votes | % | Seats | +/- | Government |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1960 | 149,440 | 6.1 (#4) | 11 / 179
|
N/A | Opposition |
1964 | 151,697 | 5.8 (#4) | 10 / 179
|
1 | Opposition |
1966 | 304,437 | 10.9 (#4) | 20 / 179
|
10 | External support (1966–1967) |
Opposition (1967–1968) | |||||
1968 | 174,553 | 6.1 (#5) | 11 / 179
|
9 | Opposition |
1971 | 262,756 | 9.1 (#5) | 17 / 179
|
6 | External support |
1973 | 183,522 | 6.0 (#7) | 11 / 179
|
6 | Opposition |
1975 | 150,963 | 5.0 (#7) | 9 / 179
|
2 | External support |
1977 | 120,357 | 3.9 (#6) | 7 / 179
|
2 | Opposition |
1979 | 187,284 | 5.9 (#5) | 11 / 179
|
4 | External support |
1981 | 353,373 | 11.3 (#3) | 21 / 179
|
10 | Opposition |
1984 | 387,122 | 11.5 (#4) | 21 / 179
|
0 | Opposition |
1987 | 490,176 | 14.6 (#3) | 27 / 179
|
6 | Opposition |
1988 | 433,261 | 13.0 (#3) | 24 / 179
|
3 | Opposition |
1990 | 268,759 | 8.3 (#4) | 15 / 179
|
9 | Opposition |
1994 | 242,398 | 7.3 (#4) | 13 / 179
|
2 | External support |
1998 | 257,406 | 7.6 (#4) | 13 / 179
|
0 | External support |
2001 | 219,842 | 6.4 (#5) | 12 / 179
|
1 | Opposition |
2005 | 201,047 | 6.0 (#6) | 11 / 179
|
1 | Opposition |
2007 | 450,975 | 13.0 (#4) | 23 / 179
|
12 | Opposition |
2011 | 326,082 | 9.2 (#5) | 16 / 179
|
7 | Coalition (2011–2014) |
External support (2014–2015) | |||||
2015 | 148,027 | 4.2 (#8) | 7 / 179
|
9 | Opposition |
2019 | 272,093 | 7.7 (#5) | 14 / 179
|
7 | External support |
2022 | 293,186 | 8.3 (#4) | 15 / 179
|
1 | Opposition |
Source: Folketingets Oplysning |
Local elections
|
|
|
European Parliament
Year | Group | Votes | % | Seats | +/- |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1979 | COM | 81,991 | 4.7 (#7) | 1 / 15
|
N/A |
1984 | 183,580 | 9.2 (#5) | 1 / 15
|
0 | |
1989 | 162,902 | 9.1 (#5) | 1 / 16
|
0 | |
1994 | NGLA | 178,543 | 8.6 (#6) | 1 / 16
|
0 |
1999 | GUE/NGL
|
140,053 | 7.1 (#7) | 1 / 16
|
0 |
2004 | G/EFA | 150,766 | 8.0 (#5) | 1 / 14
|
0 |
2009 | 371,603 | 15.9 (#3) | 2 / 13
|
1 | |
2014 | 249,305 | 11.0 (#4) | 1 / 13
|
1 | |
2019 | 364,895 | 13.2 (#3) | 2 / 14
|
1 |
Representation
Party Chairperson
The chairman of the SF has always been its party leader, which can't be taken for granted in Danish party politics.[23]
- Aksel Larsen, 1959–1968
- Sigurd Ømann, 1968–1974
- Gert Petersen, 1974–1991
- Holger K. Nielsen, 1991–2005
- Villy Søvndal, 2005–2012
- Annette Vilhelmsen, 2012–2014
- Pia Olsen Dyhr, 2014–present
Members of the Folketing
The party currently has 15 members of the Danish parliament.[24] In the 2022 elections, SF gained 1 seat, and won 15 seats in total, the best result with Pia Olsen Dyhr as leader to date.[25]
- Sigurd Agersnap
- Kirsten Normann Andersen
- Theresa Berg Andersen
- Lisbeth Bech-Nielsen
- Anne Valentina Berthelsen
- Marianne Bigum
- Astrid Carøe
- Karina Lorentzen Dehnhardt
- Pia Olsen Dyhr
- Karsten Hønge
- Sofie Lippert
- Jacob Mark
- Signe Munk
- Charlotte Broman Mølbæk
- Carl Valentin
Members of the European Parliament
The SF has always been represented in the European Parliament. It gained one seat in
Municipal and regional government
Currently the party has approximately 236 elected representatives in local town councils and 21 representatives in Denmark's fourteen regional councils. During the 1990s, the party gained its first mayors.
Former Members of the Folketing
2005–2007
- Anne Baastrup
- Steen Gade
- Pernille Vigsø Bagge
- Poul Henrik Hedeboe
- Anne Grete Holmsgaard
- Morten Homann
- Kristen Touborg Jensen
- Holger K. Nielsen
- Kamal Qureshi
- Ole Sohn
- Villy Søvndal
2007–2011
- Anne Baastrup
- Anne Grete Holmsgaard
- Astrid Krag
- Eigil Andersen
- Flemming Bonne
- Hanne Agersnap
- Holger K. Nielsen
- Ida Auken
- Jesper Petersen
- Jonas Dahl
- Kamal Qureshi
- Karina Lorentzen
- Karl Bornhøft
- Karsten Hønge
- Kristen Touborg
- Nanna Westerby
- Ole Sohn
- Pernille Frahm
- Pernille Vigsø Bagge
- Pia Olsen Dyhr
- Steen Gade
- Villy Søvndal
- Özlem Cekic
Elected in 2011 and left the party
2015–2019
- Holger K. Nielsen
- Lisbeth Bech Poulsen
- Pia Olsen Dyhr
- Jacob Mark
- Trine Torp
- Karsten Hønge
- Kirsten Normann Andersen (took former MP Jonas Dahl's seat as he left the Folketing)
Notes
- ^ Official party letter on voting ballot
- ^ Only 175 of the 179 seats in the Danish Parliament, the Folketing, are obtainable by Danish political parties as Greenland and the Faroe Islands are assigned two seats each due to their status as territories in the Kingdom of Denmark.
See also
- Green party
- Popular Socialist Youth of Denmark
- Green politics
- List of environmental organizations
- Popular socialism
References
- ^ "The statutes of Popular Socialist Youth of Denmark" (PDF).
- ^ Hoffmann-Hansen, Henrik; Nilsson, Simone; Jespersen, Johan Storgaard; Krasnik, Benjamin; Fabricius, Kitte; Schmidt, Mara Malene Raun; Gosmann, Mie Borggreen Winther og Sara Mathilde (3 October 2022). "Overblik: Partierne i Danmark". Kristeligt Dagblad (in Danish). Retrieved 4 January 2023.
- ^ a b c Nordsieck, Wolfram (2019). "Denmark". Parties and Elections in Europe. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
- )
- ^ Folkesocialisme. 1977. Retrieved 17 December 2015 – via Google Books.
- ISBN 978-1-134-07354-2.
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