Last weekend, political posters went up all over Copenhagen, on streetlights, on bridges, and on train platforms. <\/p>\n
The posters are for the local elections this month, and even though the candidates are supposed to take them down afterwards, they usually don\u2019t. <\/p>\n
So, the candidates will keep smiling and making promises through Christmas, and through the winter snow and ice. Come spring, you\u2019ll see a faded, battered photo of somebody who failed to win anything at all hanging from a light pole near you. <\/p>\n
I like Danish politics, and I follow it, even though I don\u2019t follow Danish sports or entertainment. I like Danish politics because it involves a lot of intelligent women running things, with men standing in the background to help them out. <\/p>\n
Even though I\u2019m an American citizen, I can vote in local Danish elections, having lived in Denmark for more than 3 years. Of course, you can pay taxes from the moment you step off the plane, but after 3 years, you can have a say in how those taxes are spent.<\/p>\n
Now, Danish politics are all about putting together a coalition, because there are 9 main parties, maybe 5 of whom you need to know about. And their names are confusing. For example, the sort of solid, suburban conservative party is called Venstre \u2013 the Leftist party. The sort of hip, young, new media entrepreneur party is called Radical Venstre \u2013 the Radical Left. Neither of these parties are in any way leftist.<\/p>\n
What IS leftist is Enhedslisten – Unity List – a relatively new party built on top of the old Danish Communist party. As a student in Denmark, you\u2019ll notice that a lot of your friends may vote for this party. Enhedslisten has done a great job of branding: they have a gorgeous, likeable young woman as their leader, and they\u2019ve become the cool protest party. <\/p>\n
They\u2019re also still communists \u2013 they want to shut down the stock exchange, get rid of the army, and abolish private property. A lot of people who vote for this party don\u2019t really want them to come to power. But voting for them is like giving the finger to middle-class Denmark. <\/p>\n
The ultra-left Enhedslisten sometimes votes in harmony with the ultra-right party, The Danish People\u2019s Party. This is because they both hate Denmark\u2019s membership in the European Union. Now, that ultra-right-wing party, the Danish People\u2019s Party, is an anti-foreigner party. They\u2019re always trying to tighten immigration restrictions, or close up the borders. <\/p>\n
Many Danes don\u2019t want to admit, at least to you, that they vote for the Danish People\u2019s Party. But a lot of people do – it\u2019s the third biggest party in Denmark. <\/p>\n
There is a party that wants you and wants your votes as a foreigner. That\u2019s Radikale Venstre (the Social Liberals) \u2013 the hip, entrepreneur party I mentioned before. They had a terrible ad campaign during the last election: \u201cWe trust people. Even foreigners.\u201d <\/p>\n
But their heart is in the right place. The Radikale have a multi-cultural team of candidates, and they do what they can to soften immigration restrictions, in part because their business supporters need the foreigners\u2019 skills.<\/p>\n
Anyway, I will not be voting for the Radikale. I will vote for the team lead by Frank Jensen, the Mayor of Copenhagen, who is a Social Democrat. I voted for him last time, after reviewing all the various campaign videos, and after I\u2019d made my decision, my vote was solidified because Frank Jensen had a great campaign technique. <\/p>\n
The red rose is the symbol of the socialism, and Frank found lots of attractive young men from the Social Democrat youth wing to stand outside train stations and give a single red rose to middle-aged women. <\/p>\n
It was great \u2013 I mean, these are women who haven\u2019t gotten a rose in 20 years. I think he got 85 per cent of the middle-aged female vote. Including mine! And I\u2019m a registered Republican in the United States. I\u2019m sure it was the first time ever I voted Socialist.<\/p>\n
But not the last time. I\u2019ve liked Frank\u2019s work with the city, and I\u2019m going to vote for his team again. <\/p>\n
The percentage of Danes who voted in local elections was a little disappointing last time, so this time, people have been allowed to vote anytime from August until November. You can vote by mail, at libraries, in old folks\u2019 homes, in jails, in hospitals, and at McDonald\u2019s. Yes, McDonald\u2019s. McDonald\u2019s is co-operating with the Danish authorities to get the youth vote up, so candidates will be holding rallies and speeches there. <\/p>\n
And whenever you pick up your Big Mac and fries, you can also vote for the candidate of your choice. <\/p>\n
universitypost@adm.ku.dk<\/p>\n
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