Mette Frederiksen is set to return as Danish prime minister by forming a center-left coalition government following drawn-out negotiations lasting more than two months.
The four-party coalition is expected to bring together Frederiksen’s Social Democrats, the Moderates, Green Left and the Social Liberals, according to the DR public broadcaster. The incoming PM met King Frederik X Monday evening to inform him.
“I think everyone will be surprised by how much we want to do. It is a government platform that is good both for the people in Denmark, for the generations to come, and for animals,” Frederiksen told media on Monday evening after speaking with the king aboard his ship docked in Odense Harbor.
She said the government’s platform will be presented on Tuesday while the names of the new ministers will be revealed on Wednesday.
Denmark’s March 24 parliamentary elections delivered incumbent PM Frederiksen’s Social Democrats their worst result in more than a century. Despite the setback, she managed to steer coalition talks and remain in power. The new government will replace the outgoing broad coalition comprising the Social Democrats, the Moderates and the center-right Venstre party. The coalition talks, which lasted for more than two months, are the longest in Denmark’s history.
Frederiksen also said that there was no other choice but to deliver. “We live in the best country in the world. We have one of the world’s strongest democracies. If we as politicians could not manage this task, then I don’t really know what the Danish people should expect from us,” admitting to the difficulties of the record-breaking government negotiations, calling it “long and difficult.”
This story has been updated.
