2009 Greenlandic general election
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General elections were held in Greenland on 2 June 2009. Prime Minister Hans Enoksen announced the election date on 15 April 2009, stating that he would prefer for a newly elected parliament to administer Greenland when the self-government reform takes effect on 21 June 2009.[1] The reform gave more power to the Greenlandic parliament with decisions on most issues being devolved to the parliament but defence and foreign affairs remaining under the control of Denmark.[2]
On 7 June 2009, Community of the People announced that it would form a coalition with the Democrats and the Independents.[3]
Results
| Party | Votes | % | Seats | +/– |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inuit Ataqatigiit | 12,457 | 44.06 | 14 |  7
|
| Siumut | 7,567 | 26.76 | 9 |  1
|
| Democrats | 3,620 | 12.80 | 4 | 3
|
| Atassut | 3,094 | 10.94 | 3 | 3
|
| Association of Candidates | 1,084 | 3.83 | 1 |  0
|
| Sorlaat | 383 | 1.35 | 0 | New |
| Independents | 70 | 0.25 | 0 | 0
|
| Invalid/blank votes | 235 | – | – | – |
| Total | 28,510 | 100 | 31 | 0 |
| Registered voters/turnout | 39,990 | 71.29 | – | – |
| Source: Election Passport, Parties & Elections | ||||
Election summary
The pro-independence, left-wing opposition party, Inuit Ataqatigiit (Greenlandic for: Community of the People), led by Kuupik Kleist, won the election, getting 43.7% of the votes.[2][4] The governing Siumut Party (Greenlandic for Forward) led by Prime Minister Hans Enoksen took 26.5% of the vote and lost control of the government for the first time in 30 years.[2]
Siumut is likely to be left out of government as both the Inuit Ataqatigiit and Demokraatit parties have ruled out the possibility of working with Siumut.[5] Siumut's former coalition partner, Atassut, gained too few seats to make a new coalition powerful enough to challenge for the government.[5]
A particular set-back for Siumut was the failure to re-elect Jonathan Motzfeldt, a familiar figure in Greenlandic politics having been the state's first and third prime minister who received just 91 votes and failed to be re-elected for the first time since 1971.[5] Enoksen has stated that he would step down as party leader, a position he has held since 2002, if his colleagues wish him to.[5] Siumut is believed to have lost votes over a recent series of scandals, including one over expenses, and concerns over its ability to manage with greater autonomy.[4]
Kleist set a new record for most votes in a Greenlandic election with 5,461 received. This compares with Akitsinnguaq Olsen who was elected with just 112 votes.[5] Greenland has a population of 57,600 people.[6]
The newly formed Sorlaat Partiiat gained just 383 votes in the election and dissolved shortly afterwards. The party stood on a platform of huge spending reductions and opposed Greenland rejoining the EU.
References
- ^ Simonsen, Mariia (15 April 2009) Landstingsvalg 2. juni 2009 Archived 16 April 2009 at the Wayback Machine (in Danish). Sermitsiaq.
- ^ a b c "Opposition win Greenland election". BBC. 3 June 2009. Retrieved 3 June 2009.
- ^ http://www.nasdaq.com/aspx/stock-market-news-story.aspx?storyid=200906072019dowjonesdjonline000390&title=greenland-parties-agree-on-government-coalition
- ^ a b "Pro-independence party wins Greenland poll". Agence France Presse. 3 June 2009. Retrieved 3 June 2009.
- ^ a b c d e "Greenland wakes up to first power shift in 30 years". Copenhagen Post. 3 June 2009. Archived from the original on 8 June 2009. Retrieved 3 June 2009.
- ^ "CIA world factbok". CIA. July 2009.
