Why Is Denmark So Darn Democratic?
According to the World Happiness Report, a part of the U.N. Sustainable Development Solutions Network, the Danes are the happiest people in the world. Does their socialistic, parliamentary representative democracy have anything to do with that? Danes like to say that they are happy to pay taxes, because they see what they get in return, like free healthcare, free tuition, care for the elderly...
There is also very little corruption in Denmark, in the Transparency International's annual ranking, the «Corruption Perceptions Index», Denmark and New Zealand compete for the title of «least corrupt» year after year. The level of transparency and lack of corruption make it possible to believe that people with power will act in the best interest of society. Is Denmark a democratic paradise? To quote a certain William S., “That is the question.” Is there anything rotten in the state of Denmark? Well, no system is perfect, but the Danes have succeeded in creating a society admired, even envied, by many!
Let's look into the history and the reasons of Danish democracy. In general, Danes trust their political system and their politicians. Where does the trust come from? Trust is culturally determined, children are taught by their parents, teachers, sports coaches, etc...from generation to generation. Has trust anything to do with the level of education? With the Danish system of tuition-free education and grants for every student in high schools and universities, regardless of their parents income (around 800 euros/month for university students), the average graduation rate from upper secondary education is 92%.
The Danish education system is very much inspired by the 19th century writings on education by politician, poet and clergyman N.F.S.Grundtvig. (The European Union called it’s adult education project «the Grundtvig programme», in recognition of his influence.) In «Education for the State» (1834), Grundtvig wrote: «true enlightenment must take as its starting-point the fact that as individuals we only exist by virtue of our community with our people and, by extension, with the whole world». It was important to educate young people to take an active part in the new Danish democracy.
N.F.S. Grundtvig
Image | Georg Rosenkilde, Wikimedia Commons
A well-known saying in Denmark is: «Freedom for Loki as well as for Thor», that the Danes got from Grundtvig's «Nordic Mythology» written in 1832. The two Nordic gods, Loki and Thor, each had their own view of the world, but each of them enjoyed the same freedoms. Loki is considered a trickster god, neither really good nor evil, but winning battles with words and spirit, whereas Thor has his strength and weapon. Grundtvig wanted to defend the freedom to be tolerant of different ideologies., To achieve this, there must be room for the Lokis of the world. It is the duty of a democratic country to ensure that the rights of both are protected, as long as they do not harm each other.
But when did the idea of the Danish democracy start? Usually historians attribute it to the Norse people, in the 9th century AD. When they were not being bloodthirsty Vikings, meaning travelling for the purpose of trade and occasional pillaging, the Norsemen had very civilized societies with farmers, traders and slaves, with their own political system. The organisation of the Thing, the governing assemblies of the free people, can be seen as an early version of what later became the democracy, that is still visible in the modern Scandinavian societies. Norse women had a certain degree of influence, widows with property were able to participate in the Thing. Paradoxically, Danish women did not obtain the full right to vote in elections before 1915.
Each community had its own system, a Thing on each small, local level. Individual issues could be addressed, and everyone would voice their ideas on the problem. The Thing then voted as to who should be held liable for the problem. The final decision was made by a chieftain (though often influenced by wealthy or powerful families). A more prestigious Thing, covering multiple tribes, could be held for more important matters. An early example of direct democracy!
With the Danish constitution in 1849 and the abolition of the absolute monarchy (which had existed since 1660 and then became a constitutional monarchy) came the creation of the two houses of the «Rigsdag» (like Reichstag in Germany, and Riksdag in Sweden). The Rigsdag consisted of the lower house of commoners: «Folketing» (meaning the assembly of the people), and the upper house: «Landsting» (the Land assembly) for people with means. In 1901 another change came with parliamentarism, which made Folketinget the essential chamber in Danish Parliament. With the new constitution of 1953, Denmark abolished Rigsdag and Landsting, and since then only the Folketing exists.
The world’s first female political minister, Nina Bang
Image | Peter Elfelt, Wikimedia Commons
Denmark has had 78 governments since 1849, with a multi-party system, and since the beginning of the 20th century no single party has held the absolute majority. The Social Democratic party had the largest representation in Folketinget for 77 years, with the world's first female minister, Nina Bang, in 1924. The Social Democrats laid the foundation for the Danish welfare state, which is based on collaboration between the government and the labor unions. In the election of 2019, the Social Democratic party won the majority of the seats with a coalition of the red bloc of left-wing and centre-left parties. The Prime Minister, Mette Frederiksen, is the youngest ever—currently 42 years old—and the second female prime minister in Danish political history.
Danish Prime Minister, Mette Frederiksen
Image | News Oresund, Wikimedia Commons
Over the last 10 years the average election turnout for the Danish parliament has been around 85% (you can find your country’s voter turnout statistics here). Danes automatically receive a voting card about five days before a parliamentary election or a referendum. On election day, you will find polling stations throughout the country, at town halls, sport centres and schools. If you are unable to get to a polling station—if you are out of the country or hospitalised—you can vote by post. A few people abstain from voting, but others will still return a blank ballot paper to show that democracy does matter to them.
Façade of the Danish Parliament building—The Folketinget
Image | Jebulon, Wikimedia Commons
The 175 seats in the Danish parliament are distributed according to proportional representation, if a party gets 10% of the votes, it gets 10% of the seats. Parties with less than 2% of the votes will not be represented in the parliament.
I personally remember receiving my first voting card in 1981. I felt really adult and involved in political life! My parents, who were both interested and involved in politics, taught me a lot: use your vote, otherwise you have abdicated your right!
With my mother being a convinced social democrat and my father a socialist, we had some good discussions at home., Although both my parents were on the left end of the political spectrum, I learned that being knowledgeable about public issues is important, and that it was even more important for women to vote, as they got the right quite late in history—a right for which suffragettes had fought long and hard.
I do feel privileged for growing up in the Danish democracy, where we enjoy freedom of speech, individual rights, and the freedom of assembly. Denmark does not have an official national day, but June 5th is considered it’s equivalent. Throughout the country, the day is celebrated in parks and other public spaces, by raising the Danish flag (the Dannebrog), short speeches by local politicians or celebrities, and collective singing. And of course, as at any Danish celebration, there will be lots of beer or coffee, and delicious Danish pastries. Perhaps one day you can join me for this celebration!
Flag of the Kingdom of Denmark
Image | Markus Winkler, Unsplash
