Social Democrats (Denmark) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Social Democrats is a Danish

Denmark

Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...

political party committed to the political ideology of social democracy

Social democracy

Social democracy is a political ideology of the center-left on the political spectrum. Social democracy is officially a form of evolutionary reformist socialism. It supports class collaboration as the course to achieve socialism...

. It is the major coalition partner in Denmark's government since the 2011 parliamentary election, and party leader Helle Thorning-Schmidt

Helle Thorning-Schmidt

Helle Thorning-Schmidt is a Danish politician and the current Prime Minister of Denmark. She has been leader of the Danish Social Democrats since April 2005 and prime minister since October 2011....

is the current Prime Minister of Denmark. It is the second largest party with 44 of 175 seats in the Danish parliament

Parliament

A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom. The name is derived from the French , the action of parler : a parlement is a discussion. The term came to mean a meeting at which...

, the Folketing

Folketing

The Folketing , is the national parliament of Denmark. The name literally means "People's thing"—that is, the people's governing assembly. It is located in Christiansborg Palace, on the islet of Slotsholmen in central Copenhagen....

The party first entered the Folketing in 1884

Danish Folketing election, 1884

In the Danish Folketing election of 1884, which was held on 25 June 1884, the approximate total votes and the actual seats won were:- References :...

. By 1924

Danish Folketing election, 1924

Folketing elections were held in Denmark on 11 April 1924. The result was a victory for the Social Democratic Party, which won 55 of the 149 seats. Voter turnout was 78.6% in Denmark proper. In the Faroe Islands constituency there was only one candidate, who was returned unopposed.-Denmark:-Faroe...

it had become the largest party, a distinction it would hold for 77 years.

It is a member of the Party of European Socialists

Party of European Socialists

The Party of European Socialists is a European political party led by Sergei Stanishev, former Prime Minister of Bulgaria. The PES comprises social-democratic national-level political parties primarily from Member state of the European Union, as well as other nations of the European continent. The...

and the Socialist International

Socialist International

The Socialist International is a worldwide organization of democratic socialist, social democratic and labour political parties. It was formed in 1951.- History :...

. It had four MEPs in the European Parliament

European Parliament

The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...

, an increase of three after the 2004 election. The increase was mainly supported by the large number of voters who voted for former party leader and Prime Minister

Prime Minister of Denmark

The Prime Minister of Denmark is the head of government in Danish politics. The Prime Minister is traditionally the leader of a political coalition in the Folketing and presides over the cabinet....

Poul Nyrup Rasmussen

Poul Nyrup Rasmussen , informally Poul Nyrup, born 15 June 1943), was Prime Minister of Denmark from 25 January 1993 to 27 November 2001 and is currently President of the Party of European Socialists . He was the leader of the governing Social Democrats from 1992 to 2002...

. He received 400,000 personal votes.

In government 1993–2001

The Social Democrats' social policy

Social policy

Social policy primarily refers to guidelines, principles, legislation and activities that affect the living conditions conducive to human welfare. Thus, social policy is that part of public policy that has to do with social issues...

through the 1990s and continuing in the 21st century involved a significant redistribution of income

Redistribution (economics)

Redistribution of wealth is the transfer of income, wealth or property from some individuals to others caused by a social mechanism such as taxation, monetary policies, welfare, nationalization, charity, divorce or tort law. Most often it refers to progressive redistribution, from the rich to the...

and the maintenance of a large state apparatus with collectively financed core public services

Public services

Public services is a term usually used to mean services provided by government to its citizens, either directly or by financing private provision of services. The term is associated with a social consensus that certain services should be available to all, regardless of income...

such as public healthcare, education

Education

Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...

and infrastructure

Infrastructure

Infrastructure is basic physical and organizational structures needed for the operation of a society or enterprise, or the services and facilities necessary for an economy to function...

.

Social Democrat-led coalition governments (the Cabinets of Poul Nyrup Rasmussen I

Cabinet of Poul Nyrup Rasmussen I

When the conservative Prime Minister Poul Schlüter resigned on the 15 January 1993 because of the Tamil Case, the leader of the Social Democrats Poul Nyrup Rasmussen formed his first cabinet on the 25 January 1993. The cabinet consisted of the Social Democrats, the Social Liberal Party, the Centre...

, II

Cabinet of Poul Nyrup Rasmussen II

After the 1994 Danish parliamentary election, the sitting Danish Prime Minister Poul Nyrup Rasmussen was able to form a government coalition of his own Social Democrats, the Danish Social Liberal Party and the Centre Democrats...

, III

Cabinet of Poul Nyrup Rasmussen III

After the Centre Democrats left the government coalition in 1996, the sitting Danish Prime Minister Poul Nyrup Rasmussen was able to form a government coalition of his own Social Democrats and the Danish Social Liberal Party...

, IV

Cabinet of Poul Nyrup Rasmussen IV

After the 1998 Danish parliamentary election, the sitting Danish Prime Minister Poul Nyrup Rasmussen was able to reform the government coalition of his own Social Democrats and the Danish Social Liberal Party...

) implemented the system known as flexicurity

Flexicurity

Flexicurity is a welfare state model with a pro-active labour market policy. The term was first coined by the social democratic Prime Minister of Denmark Poul Nyrup Rasmussen in the 1990s....

(flexibility and social security), mixing strong Scandinavian unemployment benefits with deregulated employment laws, making it easier for employers to fire and rehire people in order to encourage economic growth

Economic growth

In economics, economic growth is defined as the increasing capacity of the economy to satisfy the wants of goods and services of the members of society. Economic growth is enabled by increases in productivity, which lowers the inputs for a given amount of output. Lowered costs increase demand...

and reduce unemployment. It is required for people to continually try to remain an active part of the job force in order to receive benefits if they lose their job. This plan has proven to be successful at reducing unemployment, and it has been proposed as a plausible model for other European countries such as France.

The Cabinets of Poul Nyrup Rasmussen maintained a parliamentary majority during the period from 1993 to 2001 by virtue of their support from the Socialist People's Party

Socialist People's Party (Denmark)

The Socialist People's Party is a green and socialist political party in Denmark.-1959–69:The SF was founded on 15 February 1959 by Aksel Larsen, a former leader of the Communist Party of Denmark and CIA agent. Larsen was removed from the ranks of the DKP for his criticism over the Soviet...

and the Red-Green Alliance

Red-Green Alliance (Denmark)

The Red-Green Alliance is a socialist political party in Denmark.- History :The party was formed in 1989 as an electoral alliance by three left-wing parties, Left Socialists , Communist Party of Denmark and Socialist Workers Party...

.

Towards the end of the 1990s, a trade surplus of 30 billion kroner

Danish krone

The krone is the official currency of the Kingdom of Denmark consisting of Denmark, the Faroe Islands and Greenland. It is subdivided into 100 øre...

(USD

United States dollar

The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....

4.9 billion) turned into a deficit. To combat this, the government increased taxes, limiting private consumption

Consumption (economics)

Consumption is a common concept in economics, and gives rise to derived concepts such as consumer debt. Generally, consumption is defined in part by comparison to production. But the precise definition can vary because different schools of economists define production quite differently...

. The 1998 initiative, which was dubbed the Whitsun Packet (Danish: Pinsepakken) from the season it was issued, was not universally popular with the electorate, which may have been a factor in the Social Democrats' defeat in the 2001 parliamentary election

Danish parliamentary election, 2001

Parliamentary elections were held in Denmark on 20 November 2001. For the first time since the 1924 the Social Democrats did not win the most seats. Anders Fogh Rasmussen of the centre-right Venstre became Prime Minister in coalition with the Conservative People's Party, as the head of the first...

In opposition 2001–2011

After being defeated by the Liberal Party

Venstre (Denmark)

VenstreThe party name is officially not translated into any other language, but is in English often referred to as the Liberal Party. Similar rules apply for the name of the party's youth wing Venstres Ungdom. , full name Venstre, Danmarks Liberale Parti , is the largest political party in Denmark...

in the 2001 election, the party chairmanship went to former finance

Finance Minister of Denmark

The Finance Minister of Denmark is the head of the Ministry of Finance of Denmark, and a member of the Cabinet. As head of the ministry, the minister has responsibility for the ministry's tasks of administrering the state finances via the fiscal policy, and making economic predictions and...

and foreign minister

Foreign Minister of Denmark

The Danish Minister for Foreign Affairs handles Denmark's foreign affairs. The Foreign Minister works in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark.The current Minister for Foreign Affairs is Villy Søvndal.-External links:***...

Mogens Lykketoft

Mogens Lykketoft is a Danish politician, former government minister and current Speaker of the Folketing. In December 2002 he succeeded former Danish prime minister Poul Nyrup Rasmussen as leader of the Social Democratic party ....

. Following another defeat in the January 2005 election

Danish parliamentary election, 2005

Parliamentary elections were held in Denmark on 8 February 2005. Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen's Venstre retained the largest number of seats in parliament. The governing coalition between the Venstre and the Conservative People's Party remained intact, with the Danish People's Party...

, Lykketoft announced his resignation as party leader, and at an extraordinary congress on 12 March, it was decided that all members of the party would cast votes in an election of a new party leader. The two contenders for the leadership represented the two wings in the party, with Helle Thorning-Schmidt

Helle Thorning-Schmidt

Helle Thorning-Schmidt is a Danish politician and the current Prime Minister of Denmark. She has been leader of the Danish Social Democrats since April 2005 and prime minister since October 2011....

being viewed as centrist

Centrism

In politics, centrism is the ideal or the practice of promoting policies that lie different from the standard political left and political right. Most commonly, this is visualized as part of the one-dimensional political spectrum of left-right politics, with centrism landing in the middle between...

and Frank Jensen

Frank Jensen

Frank Jensen is a Danish politician, member of the Danish Social Democrats, and has been Lord Mayor of Copenhagen since 1 January 2010...

being viewed as slightly more left-wing. On 12 April 2005 Helle Thorning-Schmidt was elected as the new leader.

In government 2011–present

The incumbent centre-right coalition led by the Liberal Party

Venstre (Denmark)

lost power to a centre-left coalition led by the Social Democrats

Social Democrats (Denmark)

The Social Democrats , is a Danish political party committed to the political ideology of social democracy. It is the major coalition partner in Denmark's government since the 2011 parliamentary election, and party leader Helle Thorning-Schmidt is the current Prime Minister of Denmark...

making Helle Thorning-Schmidt

Helle Thorning-Schmidt

Helle Thorning-Schmidt is a Danish politician and the current Prime Minister of Denmark. She has been leader of the Danish Social Democrats since April 2005 and prime minister since October 2011....

the country's first female Prime Minister

Prime Minister of Denmark

The Prime Minister of Denmark is the head of government in Danish politics. The Prime Minister is traditionally the leader of a political coalition in the Folketing and presides over the cabinet....

. The Social Liberal Party and the Socialist People's Party

Socialist People's Party (Denmark)

became part of the three-party government. The new parliament convened on 4 October.

Leaders of the Social Democrats

1871 – 1872: Louis Pio
Louis Pio
Louis Pio was one of the principal founders of the organized worker's movement in Denmark, and the principal founder of the Danish Social Democratic Party.-Early life:...
1872 – 1873: Carl Würtz
1874 – 1875: Ernst Wilhelm Klein
1875 – February 1877: Louis Pio
Louis Pio
Louis Pio was one of the principal founders of the organized worker's movement in Denmark, and the principal founder of the Danish Social Democratic Party.-Early life:...
1877 February – July 1878: Chresten Hørdum
1878 February – July: A.C. Meyer
1878 – 1879: Saxo W. Wiegell
1880 – 1882: Chresten Hørdum
1882 – 1910: Peter Christian Knudsen
Peter Christian Knudsen
Peter Christian Knudsen was the leader of the Danish Social Democratic party from 1882-1910. He was a member of the Danish parliament in 1898-1901 and 1902-1909....
1910 – 1939: Thorvald Stauning
Thorvald Stauning
Thorvald August Marinus Stauning was the first social democratic Prime Minister of Denmark. He served as Prime Minister from 1924 to 1926 and again from 1929 until his death in 1942....
1939 – 1955: Hans Hedtoft
Hans Hedtoft
Hans Hedtoft Hansen was Prime Minister of Denmark from 13 November 1947 to 30 October 1950 as the leader of the Cabinet of Hans Hedtoft I and again from 30 September 1953 to 29 January 1955 as the leader of the Cabinet of Hans Hedtoft II.Hedtoft was a Social Democrat, and had taken over the...

(Alsing Andersen
Alsing Andersen
Alsing Emanuel Andersen was a Danish social democrat politician. Andersen served as the Minister of Defense for Denmark. From 8 July 1940 to 1945, he served as the vice chairman of the Danish Social Democratic Party, and as the acting chairman of the party from the death of Thorvald Stauning ...

as de-facto leader in 1941-1945)
1955 – 1960: H. C. Hansen
H. C. Hansen
Hans Christian Svane Hansen , often known as H. C. Hansen or simply H. C., was a social democrat and Prime Minister of Denmark from 29 January 1955 to 19 February 1960 as the head of the Cabinet of H. C. Hansen I and II. Before becoming Prime Minister, H. C...
1960 – 1962: Viggo Kampmann
Viggo Kampmann
Viggo Olfert Fischer Kampmann was the leader of the Danish Social Democrats and Prime Minister of Denmark from 19 February 1960 until 3 September 1962. His cabinet before the 1960 election was called the Cabinet of Viggo Kampmann I and the cabinet he formed after that election was called the...
1962 – 1972: Jens Otto Krag
Jens Otto Krag
Jens Otto Krag was a Danish politician. He was Prime Minister from 1962 to 1968 and again from 1971 to 1972....

(Erling Dinesen as de-facto leader from October 1972 to September 1973)
1973 – 1987: Anker Jørgensen
Anker Jørgensen
Anker Jørgensen is a former Danish Prime Minister and Foreign Minister. He led or represented the Social Democratic Party for well over 30 years.-Early political and personal life:...
1987 – 1992: Svend Auken
Svend Auken
Svend Gunnarsen Auken was a Danish politician. He represented the Social Democrats as a member of the Danish parliament from 1971 until his death....
1992 – 2002: Poul Nyrup Rasmussen
Poul Nyrup Rasmussen
Poul Nyrup Rasmussen , informally Poul Nyrup, born 15 June 1943), was Prime Minister of Denmark from 25 January 1993 to 27 November 2001 and is currently President of the Party of European Socialists . He was the leader of the governing Social Democrats from 1992 to 2002...
2002 – 2005: Mogens Lykketoft
Mogens Lykketoft
Mogens Lykketoft is a Danish politician, former government minister and current Speaker of the Folketing. In December 2002 he succeeded former Danish prime minister Poul Nyrup Rasmussen as leader of the Social Democratic party ....
2005 – : Helle Thorning-Schmidt
Helle Thorning-Schmidt
Helle Thorning-Schmidt is a Danish politician and the current Prime Minister of Denmark. She has been leader of the Danish Social Democrats since April 2005 and prime minister since October 2011....

International affiliations

The party was a member of the Labour and Socialist International

Labour and Socialist International

The Labour and Socialist International was an international organization of socialist and labour parties, active between 1923 and 1940. The LSI was a forerunner of the present-day Socialist International....

between 1923 and 1940.

External links

The Danish Social Democrats — official English website

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

In government 1993–2001

In opposition 2001–2011

In government 2011–present

Leaders of the Social Democrats

International affiliations

See also

External links