Red–Green Alliance

History

The party was formed in 1989 as an electoral alliance of three left-wing parties: Left Socialists (VS), Communist Party of Denmark (DKP), and Socialist Workers Party (SAP). Originally the plan was to unite these parties alongside The Greens (De Grønne), Common Course, and Humanist to form a broad-based progressive movement, but this did not materialize. A fourth party, the Communist Workers Party (KAP), succeeded in joining the alliance in 1991, but its involvement was vetoed a year later by DKP.

Prior to the 2007 Danish general election, the party nominated Asmaa Abdol-Hamid, a Muslim candidate who was noted for her support from imams, and her refusal to shake hands with men. These facts, and some of her statements regarding politics and religion, made her the target of some criticism across the political spectrum, particularly from the Danish People's Party. Some left-wing figures cited her candidacy as a reason for withdrawing their support from the party. An anti-religious network was created within the party with the stated goal of turning the party into a solely atheist party with a materialist–Marxist basis. During the campaign, there was some speculation as to whether her candidacy would attract or repel voters. The results of the election were 2.2% for the party, down from 3.4% in the 2005 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 to Frank Aaen, Johanne Schmidt-Nielsen, Line Barfod, and Per Clausen.

In the 2011 Danish general election, the party received 6.7% of the vote and tripled its representation from 4 seats to 12 seats. This was attributed to the unpopular decision of the Socialist People's Party to enter a governing coalition, with left-wing voters being attracted to the Red-Green Alliance instead. The party contested the 2013 local elections on a platform of improving public transport and making greater public investment. As part of the left-leaning "Red bloc" coalition with the Social Democrats, the Red–Green Alliance accepted the government budget twice 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 the 2015 general election, the party received 7.8% of the vote and increased its representation from 12 to 14 seats. For the 2019 European Parliament election, the party voted in a landmark decision to stand a candidate, having hitherto endorsed the People's Movement against the EU. The Red-Green Alliance's Nikolaj Villumsen won a seat at the expense of the People's Movement, and sat with The Left in the European Parliament The Socialist Youth Front ceased co-operation with the Red-Green Alliance in 2025, citing the party's 'moderation', growing nationalism and acceptance of Denmark's position in NATO. In the 2026 general election, the party increased from 9 to 11 seats.

2022 general election

Jette Gottlieb

Peder Hvelplund

Rosa Lund

Søren Egge Rasmussen

Søren Søndergaard