What does democracy mean in Denmark?
Denmark has a representative democracy. This means that the population elects representatives to Folketinget (the Danish parliament), who then make decisions on the people's behalf. On election day, the elected representatives are held accountable by the voters. Government by the people is therefore mainly indirect, but it is supplemented by referendums, where the population decides directly on a specific question.
The framework for democracy is laid down in Grundloven (the Danish constitution), which Denmark received on 5 June 1849. Danish democracy is governed by the principle of parliamentarism: a government cannot be formed or stay in power if a majority in the Folketing is against it. This principle broke through with the Change of System (Systemskiftet) in 1901 and was written into the constitution in 1953.
- The Folketing has 179 members: 175 are elected in Denmark, 2 in the Faroe Islands and 2 in Greenland.
- State power is divided three ways into a legislative, an executive and a judicial power.
- Parliamentarism means that a government must not have a majority in the Folketing against it.
- Most governments since World War II have been minority governments.
- The prime minister can call a new election at any time – this is called the right of dissolution.
- The Parliamentary Ombudsman (Folketingets Ombudsmand) monitors the public administration.
- Since 1953 there have been 16 referendums – more than half have been about the EU.
The separation of powers
With the constitution of 1849, the king's absolute power was abolished, and state power was divided into three:
- The legislative power: the government and the Folketing legislate jointly.
- The executive power: the government administers the laws through the ministries and puts them into practice.
- The judicial power: the courts settle disputes between citizens and between citizens and the state, and pass judgment in criminal cases. Read more under the legal system.
The basic idea is that the three powers should check and limit each other, so that power does not become centralised or abused.
The Folketing – Denmark's parliament
Together with the government, the Folketing holds the legislative power and is housed at Christiansborg in Copenhagen. It has 179 members: 175 are elected in Denmark, 2 in the Faroe Islands and 2 in Greenland. The Folketing is elected for a maximum of four years at a time – you can read about the election rules under elections and parties.
The parliamentary year begins on the first Tuesday of October, when the prime minister gives the opening address on the state of the realm. The Folketing passes on average about 200 bills a year, including finansloven (the finance act), which is the state's overall budget for the coming year. A bill must go through three readings in the parliamentary chamber before it can be passed, and a vote is only valid if at least 90 members take part. Sittings of the Folketing are, as a rule, open to the public.
The committees of the Folketing
A large part of the work takes place in the standing committees, often called the workshops of the Folketing. There are normally between 20 and 25 standing committees, and a committee typically has 29 members, distributed to reflect the size of the parties in the Folketing. After the first reading, a bill is normally sent for thorough examination in a committee, which finally writes a report (betænkning). According to the constitution, there must also be a Foreign Policy Committee, and the European Affairs Committee gives the government a negotiating mandate before it attends important negotiations in the EU.
The government and the prime minister
The government holds the executive power and also prepares the great majority of bills. It is led by the prime minister and consists of ministers from one or more parties. Formally, it is the king who appoints the government – often after a so-called royal round of consultations (kongerunde) – but he must not appoint a government that has a majority in the Folketing against it. The king has no political power – read more under the royal house.
The prime minister appoints the other ministers and decides their number; since 2000 there have been between 17 and 23 ministers. A minister does not need to be a member of the Folketing. The prime minister can call a new election at any time – this is called the right of dissolution (opløsningsretten).
Minority governments and cooperative democracy
If the government parties together hold a majority in the Folketing, it is called a majority government – for example, the government in office since 2022 made up of Socialdemokratiet (the Social Democrats), Venstre and Moderaterne. The great majority of governments since World War II, however, have been minority governments, which need votes from supporting parties to build a majority behind their proposals. The parties opposed to the government are called the opposition. Since 1920, no single party has held a majority on its own, and most laws are therefore passed through broad compromises – this is known as cooperative democracy (det samarbejdende folkestyre).
Checks on power and the Parliamentary Ombudsman
The Folketing checks that the government implements the laws as intended. Members can put questions to the ministers, raise interpellation debates and summon a minister to a consultation. If a majority declares no confidence in the prime minister – a vote of no confidence – the government must resign, or the prime minister must call a new election. If a minister is suspected of something unlawful in office, the case can be brought before a special court, Rigsretten (the Court of Impeachment).
Folketingets Ombudsmand (the Parliamentary Ombudsman) is mentioned in the constitution and monitors the public administration. The Ombudsman is elected by the Folketing but works independently and assesses whether the authorities have made errors or been negligent. The Ombudsman cannot overturn an authority's decision, but can criticise the authorities and urge them to change their practice.
Referendums and citizens' proposals
In a referendum, the population takes part directly in decision-making. The constitution stipulates that certain questions must be decided by referendum – among them amendments to the constitution and changes to the voting age. A minority of at least one third of the members of the Folketing (60 members) can demand that a passed bill be put to a referendum. And if Denmark is to cede sovereignty to international cooperation, a referendum is required unless at least 150 of the 179 members vote in favour.
Since 1953 there have been 16 referendums, and more than half have concerned Denmark's relationship with the EU. In 2000, a majority voted no to the euro, and in 2022 a large majority voted yes to abolishing the defence opt-out. Since 2018, citizens with the right to vote have also been able to submit citizens' proposals (borgerforslag): at least four citizens must put forward the proposal, and if it gains 50,000 supporters within 180 days, the Folketing considers whether it should be introduced as a bill.
Find more key terms in the glossary, and read about the format of the test in the guide to the indfødsretsprøven 2026.