Mai Minna Villadsen(born 26 December 1991) is a Danish politician who is a member of theFolketingsince the2019 Danish general election.[1]

Mai Minna Villadsen
Villadsen in 2022
Political spokesperson of theRed–Green Alliance
In office
10 February 2021 – 22 August 2023
Preceded byPernille Skipper
Succeeded byPelle Dragsted
Member of theFolketing
Assumed office
5 June 2019
ConstituencyNorth Zealand
Personal details
Born(1991-12-21)21 December 1991(age 32)
Kibæk,Denmark
Political partyRed–Green Alliance
Alma materGefion Gymnasium

Villadsen served as the political spokesperson of theRed–Green Alliancefrom 2021 until 2023. She was succeeded in this role byPelle Dragsted.[2]

Early life

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Villadsen grew up in the town ofKibæk,which is one of the places in Denmark where theRed–Green Alliancehas the lowest voter turnout.[3]She is the daughter of primary school teachers Jørn Sloth Andersen and Lisbeth Ejby Villadsen.[4]Villadsen has mentioned her grandmother, who was a seamstress and active in trade union life, as her inspiration to enter politics.[5]

Villadsen attended Kibæk School from 1997 until 2007 and became a student atGefion Gymnasiumin 2011, but without subsequently completing a higher education.[6]

Career

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From 2013 until 2015, Villadsen was employed as a youth consultant in the trade unionHK Denmark,where she worked in organising young people in the professional community and advised members in connection with dismissals.[4]

From 2015 until 2019, she was a political adviser in the Red–Green Alliance. Around the same time, she worked as an external lecturer atthink tankCEVEA, and in the period 2015 until 2017 as an external project manager and lecturer at DeltagerDanmark.[4]The work consisted, among other things, of training young professional activists in debate and organisation.[4]

Villadsen was elected into parliament at the 2019 election, where she received 2,572 votes. On 10 February 2021, she became the new political spokesperson for the Red–Green Alliance, afterPernille Skipper.[7][8]Despite the Red-Green Alliance losing four seats at the2022 Danish general election,Villadsen was re-elected receiving 10,822 personal votes.[9]

On 22 August 2023, Villadsen left office as the political spokesperson of the Red-Green Alliance. Her replacement Pelle Dragsted was hailed as ‘capable, visionary and committed’ as he put forward a revitalised party manifesto.[10]

References

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  1. ^"Mai Villadsen".The Danish Parliament(in Danish).Retrieved2021-02-16.
  2. ^"LIVE Enhedslisten præsenterer Pelle Dragsted som ny politisk ordfører".DR(in Danish). 2023-08-22.Retrieved2023-08-22.
  3. ^Rohde, Thomas Søgaard (12 July 2019)."En »skelsættende« begivenhed fik Enhedslistens nye håb til at diskutere politik midt i matematiktimen".Berlingske(in Danish). Archived fromthe originalon 13 July 2019.Retrieved9 April2022.
  4. ^abcd"Mai Villadsen (EL)".Folketinget(in Danish).Archivedfrom the original on 1 January 2022.Retrieved9 April2022.
  5. ^Morgen, A.B. (8 December 2019)."Julekalender med Mai Villadsen:" Min farmors generation har kæmpet for mange af de rettigheder, som vi tager for givet i dag "".Altinget(in Danish). Archived fromthe originalon 21 March 2021.
  6. ^Jenvall, Line; Henriksen, Morten (10 February 2021)."Enhedslistens nye frontfigur hedder Mai Villadsen: Hun er 29 år og har ingen uddannelse. Men hun vil gøre verden til et bedre sted".DR(in Danish). Archived fromthe originalon 26 March 2022.Retrieved9 April2022.
  7. ^"Valgte kandidater og stedfortrædere, Folketingsvalg onsdag 5. juni 2019".Dst.dk.Retrieved21 August2021.
  8. ^"Skippers afløser vandt kampvalg om sin nye toppost".TV 2(in Danish). 10 February 2021.Retrieved16 February2021.
  9. ^"Hvem er valgt? Se valgte kandidater og personlige stemmer | DR".www.dr.dk(in Danish).Retrieved2022-11-02.
  10. ^Hunter, Lena (2023-08-22)."The Copenhagen Post".The Copenhagen Post.Retrieved2023-08-22.
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