Danish Prime Minister calls an election for 2007

October 24, 2007

The Prime Minister of Denmark, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, has called for snap elections for Denmark's unicameral parliament, the Folketing. The parliamentary election will be held on Tuesday, November 13, 2007. The call follows over a month of rumours in the media.

Rasmussen made the announcement in an address to the Folketing at 1:06 p.m. CEST (UTC+2), stating that the current administration was not stepping down and that the election is to be held now to avoid having speculation dominate the current political debates.

The last election was held on February 8, 2005 for a term of four years. In Denmark, however, the Prime Minister has the option to dissolve the parliament and call a snap election at any time before the four years are up.

The current government coalition consisting of Venstre (Rasmussen's Liberal party) and Conservative People's Party has not resigned and seeks re-election. It has been the governing coalition in Denmark since 2001. The Danish People's Party backs the current government but is not part of it.

Recent opinion polls indicate the minority government and its supporting party would still command a majority among Danish voters.