The pro-independence liberal Demokraatit Party pulled off an upset victory in Greenland’s election. The party has been critical of President Donald Trump’s desire to take over the territory.
The Demokraatit Party, which favors a slow pace of independence, won the highest share of votes of the five major parties, claiming 30% of the vote compared to 9% in 2021.
The two social democratic parties that have dominated Greenland politics since autonomy was granted in 1979, Inuit Ataqatigiit and the Siumut, came in third and fourth place with 22% and 15% of the vote, respectively. Naleraq, a populist center-right party that favors the most rapid pace of independence, came in second with 26%.
According to Euractiv, most pundits believe the most likely coalition is between Demokraatit and the incumbent IA.
The election was dominated by Trump’s open desire to acquire the world’s largest island. Every party except for one sternly opposes his overtures, and that party came in last.
Democratic Party Chairman Jens-Frederik Nielsen, 33, won plaudits for telling Trump, “We are not for sale.” On Tuesday, he argued, “When you see the way Trump speaks, we need to have a tougher tone.”
The Danish media outlet Politiken reported that before the election, the U.S. consulate in Nuuk had reached out to all Greenland party leaders to set up a meeting and hear their thoughts on the United States. Nielsen decried the move as election interference.
“I consider this to be an attempt to interfere in the Greenlandic election, where the consulate might try to influence the parties to be more open towards the US. I don’t think it’s appropriate just before an election to try to influence — especially given the rhetoric from the U.S.,” he said, adding that he declined the invitation.
Despite the international attention, Maria Ackren, a professor at University of Greenland, told the BBC that the main reasons for Demokraatit’s success were a desire for a change in government and dissatisfaction with local fishing laws, along with other domestic disputes.
Though Trump first floated the idea of acquiring Greenland during his first term, he has made more of a sustained effort to acquire it during his second. He reaffirmed his desire during his first address to Congress last week.
WHAT HAPPENED THE PREVIOUS THREE TIMES THE US ATTEMPTED TO ACQUIRE GREENLAND
“We need Greenland for national security and even international security, and we’re working with everybody involved to try and get it,” he said. “But we need it really for international world security, and I think we’re going to get it.”
The U.S. occupied and developed Greenland during World War II, and has undertaken serious efforts to purchase it from Denmark in 1867, 1910, and 1946.
