TheRed–Green Alliance[14][15]orUnity List[16][17][18](Danish:Enhedslisten – De Rød-Grønne,[19]lit. 'The Unity List – The Red–Greens',EL) is aneco-socialistpolitical party in Denmark.[4]It was founded in 1989 with the merger of threeMarxistparties[20]and it is the most left-wing party in theFolketing,where it advocates for the expansion of thewelfare stateandsocial justiceas well as thesocialist transformationof Denmark and the entire globe.[21]During the2021 Copenhagen City Council electionthe party placed first, with 24.6% of the votes.[22]The party is also active in various trade unions within Denmark.[21][23]
Red–Green Alliance Enhedslisten – De Rød-Grønne | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Abbreviation | EL Ø[a] |
| Leader | Collective leadership |
| Political spokesperson | Pelle Dragsted |
| Founded | 2 December 1989 |
| Merger of | Left Socialists Communist Party of Denmark Socialist Workers Party Communist Workers Partyindependents |
| Headquarters | Studiestræde 24, 1455Copenhagen |
| Youth wing | Cooperating withRGUyouth organization andSUFyouth organization) |
| Membership(2021) |  9,398[1] |
| Ideology | |
| Political position | Left-wing[8][9]tofar-left[10] |
| European affiliation | European Left Alliance for the People and the Planet Now the People! European Anti-Capitalist Left |
| European Parliament group | The Left in the European Parliament – GUE/NGL[11] |
| Nordic affiliation | Nordic Green Left Alliance |
| Predecessors | International Socialists (Denmark) Revolutionære Socialisterda Socialist Workers Party (Denmark) Communist Party of Denmark/Marxist–Leninists |
| Colours | Red Green Orange (customary) |
| Folketing | 9 / 179[b] |
| European Parliament | 1 / 14 |
| Regions[12] | 12 / 205 |
| Municipalities[13] | 109 / 2,432 |
| Election symbol | |
 | |
| Website | |
| enhedslisten | |
Ideological position
editThe party describes itself as a democratic and socialistgrassrootsparty, which representsgreen politics,among the Danishpeace,civil and political rights,andlabour movements.The party's ideological position is set out in a manifesto from 2014.[21]It proposes that a socialistic society of the future "neither can nor should be described in detail, but rather be developed and shaped by the people living in it". It describes socialism as "an answer to the problems caused by capitalism such as non-sufficient democracy, crises, destruction of nature, inequality, racism and war".[21]
Holdinganti-capitalist[7]andsoft Eurosceptic[4][24][25]views, it states this about the economic system:
A new and actually democratic system of society requires fundamental changes in the ownership of the means of production, such as companies, land and natural resources. Collective forms of ownership will be dominating. We propose that public authorities, co-workers, local communities and other collectives of persons should own and run institutions and companies.... A democratic economy means a democratic work life as well. The work place should be characterized by democracy, and the employees must have a constitutional right to decisive influence on the organization of work in the workplace.[21]
The Red–Green Alliance recognizes that methods achieving this may differ depending on the course of class struggle, but will eventually require a revolution—one that must be supported by a majority of the population manifested through democratic and free elections.[21]The party often adopts particular views in relation to the other parties in the Folketing and opt out of many of the settlements reached, seen as an expression of class collaboration. Until the conditions for the party's long-term goal are presented, the party will use its seats in parliament to vote for any improvement and against any deterioration of working-class people's lives. In line with this, the party agreed at its national conference in 2010 that ifHelle Thorning-Schmidtbecame Prime Minister after the 2011 election, the party would vote for a "red" budget bill that did not contain obvious flaws.
Policies
editSocial policy
editThe party places great emphasis on the fight againstsocial inequalityand poverty, and is in favour of strengthening and expanding thewelfare state.The party believes there is place in society for all forms of diversity, including gender, sexuality, disability and ethnic background.[26]It also advocates for a larger public sector, among other things, to improve quality of life for public sector employees.[27]
The party believes people should be free to choose when they want to get an education and is opposed totuition fees,which they believe harm opportunities for everyone to acquire an education.[28]The party does not see unemployment as being equal to laziness and seeks to abolish the Danish equivalent ofworkfare.[29]
Economic policy
editThe party is decisively anti-capitalist and has particularly distinguished itself as an opponent oftransfer pricing,whereby multinational companies minimise the amount they pay in tax by attributing their profits to countries with lower tax rates.
In response to theGreat Recessionof 2007–2009, the Red–Green Alliance urged stricter control of loans, the introduction of aTobin tax,and thenationalisationof banks andmortgagecompanies. It also believes that thepublic sectormust be expanded, the wages of the lowest-paid workers raised, and that the insurance-based unemployment benefit period should be extended to a minimum of four years. At the same time, it believes that students should be given a greater grant to be used in state education.[30]At minimum, all benefits should be raised to 13,500 kroner per month before taxes.[29]
Foreign policy
editThe party advocates forforeign policybased on the respect for human rights, which it believes has never been appropriately prioritised in the past. It also proposes greater support for developing countries through a doubling offoreign aid,[31]and campaigns for Denmark's withdrawal fromNATO.In March 2019, the party announced it would no longer campaign for a referendum to leave the EU, pointing toBrexitillustrating the need for clarity before withdrawal can be considered.[32]
The party operates on the fundamental belief that peace is preferable to war, and has been opposed to Denmark's participation in the wars inIraqandAfghanistanfrom the beginning. That principle was challenged in 2011, when the party's parliamentary group voted in favour of Denmark's participation in theUnited Nations-sanctioned military action inLibyaon the basis that it was a humanitarian action.[33]However, the decision led to significant backlash, and the party's support was pulled back after the military intervention began.[34]
History
edit
The party was formed in 1989 as anelectoral allianceof three left-wing parties:Left Socialists(VS),Communist Party of Denmark(DKP), andSocialist Workers Party(SAP). Originally the plan was to unite these parties alongsideThe Greens(De Grønne),Common Course,and Humanist to form a broad-basedprogressivemovement, but this did not materialize.[35]A fourth party, theCommunist Workers Party(KAP), succeeded in joining the alliance in 1991, but its involvement was vetoed a year later by DKP.
Prior to the2007 Danish general election,the party enlistedAsmaa Abdol-Hamid,a DanishMuslimcandidate who identified herself as a feminist, democrat, and socialist.[36]She is endorsed by someimams,opposed by others (including those inHizb ut-Tahrir,a fundamentalist organization). She wears a hijab and does not shake hands with men.[37]These facts, and some of her statements regarding politics and religion, made her the target of some criticism across the political spectrum, particularly from theDanish People's Party.Some left-wing figures cited her candidacy as a reason for withdrawing their support from the party.[38]An anti-religious network was created within the party with the stated goal of turning the party into a solelyatheistparty with amaterialist–Marxistbasis.[39]
During the campaign, there was some speculation as to whether her candidacy would attract or repel voters.[40][41]The results of the election were 2.2% for the party, down from 3.4% in the2005 Danish general election.Although not elected, Abdol-Hamid maintained that she had attracted voters to the party. The four seats won by the party went toFrank Aaen,Johanne Schmidt-Nielsen,Line Barfod,and Per Clausen.
In the2011 Danish general election,the party received 6.7% of the vote and tripled its representation from 4 seats to 12 seats.
The party contested the2013 local electionson a platform of improving public transport and making greater public investment.[42]
As part of the left-leaning "Red bloc" coalition with theSocial Democrats,the Red–Green Alliance accepted thegovernment budgettwice and was in opposition twice in the period from 2011 to 2015. But at no point did they report direct opposition to the government. In the2015 general election,the party received 7.8% of the vote and increased its representation from 12 to 14 seats.
Organization
editLeadership
editThe party is the only one in theFolketingwhich does not have an official party leader, instead having collective leadership. However, since 2009 it has had a political spokesperson, who has served as the party'sde factorepresentative, and serves as its leader in party leader debates.[43]
List of political spokespersons
edit- Johanne Schmidt-Nielsen(2009–2016)
- Pernille Skipper(2016–2021)
- Mai Villadsen(2021–2023)
- Pelle Dragsted(2023–present)
Elected representatives
edit2022 general election
edit- Jette Gottlieb
- Peder Hvelplund
- Rosa Lund
- Søren Egge Rasmussen
- Søren Søndergaard
- Victoria Velásquez
- Mai Villadsen
- Pelle Dragsted
- Trine Mach
Membership
edit| Year | Membership | Change |
| 1992 | 1,082 | – |
| 1993 | 999 | -7.7% |
| 1994 | 1,093 | +9.4% |
| 1995 | 1,189 | +8.8% |
| 1996 | 1,282 | +7.8% |
| 1997 | 1,479 | +15.4% |
| 1998 | 2,023 | +36.8% |
| 1999 | 1,968 | -2.7% |
| 2000 | 1,945 | -1.1% |
| 2001 | 1,992 | +2.4% |
| 2002 | 2,366 | +18.8% |
| 2003 | 2,321 | -1.9% |
| 2004 | 2,524 | +8.7% |
| 2005 | 3,739 | +48.1% |
| 2006 | 4,127 | +10.4% |
| 2007 | 4,099 | -0.7% |
| 2008 | 4,330 | +5.6% |
| 2009 | 4,373 | +1.0% |
| 2010 | 4,553 | +4.1% |
| 2011 | 7,714 | +51.0% |
| 2012 | 9,385 | +21.7% |
| 2013 | 9,483 | +1.0% |
| 2014 | 9,023 | -4.9% |
| 2015 | 9,504 | +5.3% |
| 2016 | 9,335 | -1.8% |
| 2017 | 9,015 | -3.4% |
| 2018 | 8,936 | -3.4% |
| 2019 | 9,662 | +8.1% |
Electoral performance
editParliament
edit| Election | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | Government |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 54,038 | 1.7 (#10) | 0 / 179
|
 0
|
Extra-parliamentary |
| 1994 | 104,701 | 3.1 (#7) | 6 / 179
|
 6
|
Opposition |
| 1998 | 91,933 | 2.7 (#8) | 5 / 179
|
1
|
External support |
| 2001 | 82,685 | 2.4 (#7) | 4 / 179
|
1
|
Opposition |
| 2005 | 114,123 | 3.4 (#7) | 6 / 179
|
2
|
Opposition |
| 2007 | 74,982 | 2.2 (#8) | 4 / 179
|
2
|
Opposition |
| 2011 | 236,860 | 6.7 (#6) | 12 / 179
|
8
|
External support |
| 2015 | 274,463 | 7.8 (#4) | 14 / 179
|
2
|
Opposition |
| 2019 | 244,664 | 6.9 (#6) | 13 / 179
|
1
|
External support |
| 2022 | 181,452 | 5.1 (#8) | 9 / 179
|
4
|
Opposition |
Red–Green Alliance tends to have a higher vote share in large urban areas, and especially inCopenhagen Municipality.In the2022 Danish general election,it became the largest party in 4 nomination districts of the municipality, namelyInner City,Nørrebro,BispebjergandVesterbro.The party is much more weakly positioned in rural parts of Denmark, having received only 2.9% of the vote outside themunicipalitiesof the three largestcities.[44]
Local elections
edit
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
European Parliament
editPrior to 2016, the Red–Green Alliance never directly contested elections to theEuropean Parliament,preferring to support thePeople's Movement against the EU,theEuroscepticparty sits inThe Left in the European Parliament – GUE/NGLgroup now. Some of the party's MPs considered running an independent list for the2014 elections,[45]but this idea was dismissed by a majority in the party's yearly meeting.[46]
In a historic decision in the party's yearly meeting in May 2016, a majority decided to directly contest the2019 European Parliament election.[47]
The 2024-2029 MEP isPer Clausen.[48]
| Year | List leader | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | EP Group |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Nikolaj Villumsen | 151,903 | 5.51 (#7) | 1 / 14
|
New | The Left |
| 2024 | Per Clausen | 172,287 | 7.04 (#7) | 1 / 15
|
0
|
Notes
edit- ^Official party letter on voting ballot
- ^Only 175 of the 179 seats in the Danish Parliament, theFolketing,are obtainable byDanish political partiesasGreenlandand theFaroe Islandsare assigned two seats each due to their status as territories in theKingdom of Denmark.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^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).Archivedfrom the original on 8 November 2022.Retrieved4 January2023.
- ^"Danish elections 2015: a guide to the parties, candidates and electoral system".the Guardian.16 June 2015.Archivedfrom the original on 11 July 2022.Retrieved11 July2022.
- ^Political and cultural representations of Muslims: Islam in the plural.Christopher Flood. Leiden: Brill. 2012. p. 43.ISBN978-90-04-23103-0.OCLC808367020.
{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: others (link) - ^abcNordsieck, Wolfram (2019)."Denmark".Parties and Elections in Europe.Archivedfrom the original on 1 April 2022.Retrieved16 April2018.
- ^"Copenhagen faces backlash over €2.7B 'green' island plan".POLITICO.15 December 2022.Archivedfrom the original on 28 December 2022.Retrieved28 December2022.
- ^"Interview med Pelle Dragsted:" Vi er et parti med et socialistisk og marxistisk udgangspunkt. "".27 September 2023.
- ^abÅsa Bengtsson; Kasper Hansen; Ólafur Þ Harõarson; Hanne Marthe Narud; Henrik Oscarsson (15 November 2013).The Nordic Voter: Myths of Exceptionalism.ECPR Press. p. 204.ISBN978-1-907301-50-6.
- ^
- "The left-wing Red-Green Alliance(GUE/NGL) also look like they will make no significant gains in the election despite taking their first ever seat in the European Parliament last week, won from the left-wing People's Movement Against the EU (GUE/NGL) ".Europe Elects.1 June 2019.Archivedfrom the original on 8 August 2019.Retrieved9 August2019.
- "Danish left-wing party changes stance on EU membership referendum".The Local dk.15 March 2019.Archivedfrom the original on 31 August 2019.Retrieved9 August2019.
- "Fourth party leader states intentions to become Danish PM".The Local dk.16 August 2018.Archivedfrom the original on 8 August 2019.Retrieved9 August2019.
Pernille Skipper, lead spokesperson with theleft-wing Red-Green Alliance (Enhedslisten) party,has said she intends to run as a prime ministerial candidate at Denmark's next general election.
- Jensen, Teis (24 June 2016)."Danish government-allied populists call for EU vote, PM rejects".Reuters.Archivedfrom the original on 5 October 2019.Retrieved5 October2019.
- ^Imagining the Peoples of Europe – populist discourses across the political spectrum.Edited by Jan Zienkowski and Ruth Breeze. p. 149. Chapter 6. Chapter author – Óscar García Agustín. Published by John Benjamins Publishing Company in 2019. Retrieved viaGoogle Books.
- ^
- March, Luke (2008).Contemporary Far Left Parties in Europe(PDF).Berlin: Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung. p. 3.ISBN978-3-86872-000-6.Archived(PDF)from the original on 9 September 2011.Retrieved8 September2011.
- Edwards, Geoffrey; Georg Wiessala (2000).The European Union: annual review 1998/1999.Wiley-Blackwell. p. 184.ISBN978-0-631-21598-1.
- Banks, Arthur S.; Thomas C. Muller (1995).Political Handbook of the World 1994–95.CSA Publications. p.234.ISBN978-0-933199-10-1.
- Government and opposition, Volume 34.Weidenfeld and Nicolson. 1999. p. 73.
- ^"Enhedslisten-GUE/NGL".Archivedfrom the original on 8 August 2019.Retrieved8 August2019.
- ^"AKVA3: Valg til regions råd efter område, parti og stemmer/kandidater/køn".Statistics Denmark.Archivedfrom the original on 5 February 2017.Retrieved13 June2010.
- ^"VALGK3: Valg til kommunale råd efter område, parti og stemmer/kandidater/køn".Statistics Denmark.Archivedfrom the original on 5 February 2017.Retrieved13 June2010.
- ^Boffey, Daniel (3 March 2021)."Denmark under pressure to drop plans to work with Israel on vaccines".The Guardian.Archivedfrom the original on 31 March 2021.Retrieved3 April2021.
- ^Skydsgaard, Nikolaj (20 April 2020)."Denmark blocks firms registered in tax-havens from state aid".Reuters.Archivedfrom the original on 26 March 2021.Retrieved3 April2021.
- ^"Denmark passes legislation to strip ISIL fighters of citizenship".Al Jazeera.24 October 2019.Archivedfrom the original on 11 May 2021.Retrieved3 April2021.
- ^Meret, Susi; Beyer Gregersen, Andreas (24 July 2019)."Islam as a" floating signifier ": Right-wing populism and perceptions of Muslims in Denmark".Brookings Institution.Archivedfrom the original on 12 April 2021.Retrieved3 April2021.
- ^Thomassen, Lasse (5 June 2015)."Is there an Alternative for Denmark?".openDemocracy.Archivedfrom the original on 21 April 2021.Retrieved3 April2021.
- ^Gemma Loomes (17 June 2013).Party Strategies in Western Europe: Party Competition and Electoral Outcomes.Routledge. pp. 201–.ISBN978-1-136-59303-1.Retrieved31 July2013.
- ^"Enhedslistens historie".Enhedslisten.Archived fromthe originalon 19 September 2010.Retrieved25 February2015.
- ^abcdef"Enhedslistens principprogram".Enhedslisten.Archivedfrom the original on 18 July 2011.Retrieved25 February2015.
- ^"Kommunalvalget, Resultater i København".kmdvalg.dk(in Danish).Archivedfrom the original on 18 May 2022.Retrieved6 September2022.
- ^Jacobsen, Louis (11 November 2019)."Fagbevægelsen skal være politisk, men ikke partipolitisk".Information(in Danish).Archivedfrom the original on 30 June 2022.Retrieved6 September2022.
- ^"The UK and Denmark: Growing public euroscepticism".Archived fromthe originalon 22 January 2019.Retrieved17 September2014.
- ^"EU-politik".enhedslisten.dk(in Danish). Archived fromthe originalon 5 March 2016.Retrieved7 March2015.
- ^"Plads til alle".Enhedslisten.Archived fromthe originalon 6 July 2010.Retrieved25 February2015.
- ^"Flere hænder, mere i løn".Enhedslisten.Archived fromthe originalon 10 June 2015.Retrieved25 February2015.
- ^"Børn og uddannelse".Enhedslisten.Archived fromthe originalon 10 June 2015.Retrieved25 February2015.
- ^ab"Ulighed og fattigdom".Enhedslisten.Archived fromthe originalon 1 July 2010.Retrieved25 February2015.
- ^"Velfærd til alle".Archived fromthe originalon 17 July 2010.Retrieved20 November2013.
- ^Enhedslisten på Folketingets hjemmeside
- ^Hvass, Jesper; Rytgaard, Nikolaj (15 March 2019)."Enhedslisten parkerer krav om dansk udmeldelse af EU efter britisk kaos".Jyllands-Posten(in Danish).Archivedfrom the original on 14 March 2019.Retrieved15 March2019.
- ^"Enhedslisten stemmer for humanitær aktion i Libyen".Enhedslisten.Archived fromthe originalon 10 June 2015.Retrieved25 February2015.
- ^Oliver Routhe Skov og Turi Kjestine Meyhoff (30 March 2011)."Enhedslisten trækker støtten til Libyen-krigen".Archivedfrom the original on 1 April 2011.Retrieved25 February2015.
- ^"Enhedslistens historie".Enhedslisten.Archived fromthe originalon 19 September 2010.Retrieved25 February2015.
- ^"Feminist, socialist, devout Muslim: woman who has thrown Denmark into turmoil".The Guardian.16 May 2007.Archivedfrom the original on 19 December 2013.Retrieved20 November2013.
- ^Imamer anbefaler AsmaaArchived19 December 2013 at theWayback Machine,Kristeligt Dagblad, 1 May 2007
- ^Kære AsmaaArchived7 August 2011 at theWayback Machine,Information, 1 September 2007
- ^Religionskrig hos Enhedslisten[permanent dead link],aalborg.dk, 20 September 2007
- ^Asmaa kan sprænge Enh's partiliste i KøbenhavnArchived4 December 2007 at theWayback Machine,Politiken, 2 November 2007
- ^Ekspert: Asmaa har skræmt marxisterneArchived3 December 2007 at theWayback Machine,Politiken, 1 November 2007
- ^"Party profile: Enhedslisten".9 November 2013.Archivedfrom the original on 23 November 2013.Retrieved20 November2013.
- ^"Pelle Dragsted bliver ny politisk ordfører for Enhedslisten".DR(in Danish). 22 August 2023.Retrieved23 August2023.
- ^"FOLKETINGSVALG TIRSDAG 1. NOVEMBER 2022 | Nyheder".dst.dk(in Danish).Retrieved9 June2023.
- ^"Red–Green Alliance puts pressure to People's Movement Against the EU".Ekstra Bladet(in Danish). 27 March 2013.Retrieved21 May2016.
- ^"Red–Green Alliance scraps EU election run".Berlingske(in Danish). 27 April 2013.Retrieved21 May2016.
- ^"Red–Green Alliance will run independently in the next European Parliament election"(in Danish).Danmarks Radio.15 May 2016.Archivedfrom the original on 19 May 2016.Retrieved21 May2016.
- ^"Home | Per CLAUSEN | MEPs | European Parliament".europarl.europa.eu.20 February 1955.Retrieved8 September2024.
External links
edit- (in Danish)Official website