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The Social Democrats (Socialdemokraterne), is a Danish political party. After the 2001 parliamentary elections it became the second largest party, with 29.1% of the votes and 52 seats. These results were the first time the Social Democrats were not the most popular party since the end of World War II. The party is currently led by Mogens Lykketoft, and it is a member of the Party of European Socialists and the Socialist International. It has two MEPs in the European Parliament.
Recent history
After the election loss the Liberal Party 2001 elections, the party chairmanship went to Mogens Lykketoft, who held the post of Minister of Finance for several years under Poul Nyrup Rasmussen leadership.
The Social Democrats' social policy through the 1990s and continuing in the 21st century involved a significant redistribution of income, the maintenance of a large state apparatus, with collectively financed core services, such as healthcare, education, and infrastructure. The Social Democrats had maintained a parliamentary majority during the period from 1993 to 2001 by virtue of their support from the Socialist People's Party and the Unity List, both parties which are considered significantly left-wing.
The Social Democrats raised taxes on people with low income by enacting the Gross Income Tax (Bruttoskat) which taxed 8 percent of all income. This runs contrary to the party's image of being a supporter of those less well off economically.
Towards the end of the 1990s, the trade surplus of 30 billion Kroner (USD 4.9 billion) became a deficit in 1999. To combat this, the Social Democrats increased taxes, limiting private consumption. It worked, but the initiative, called "Pinsepakken of 1999", was very unpopular among the Danish populace. It was one factor in their defeat in the 2001 general election.
See also
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