Folketing

From 1849 to 1953 the Folketing was one of the two houses in the bicameral parliament known as the Rigsdag; the other house was known as Landstinget. Since both houses, in principle, had equal power, the terms "upper house" and "lower house" were not generally used. The difference between the houses was voter representation.

The Folketing was elected by common vote among men and consisted mainly of independent farmers, traders, and merchants as well as the educated classes. From 1866 to 1915 the right of vote for the Landsting was restricted to the wealthiest, and some of its members were appointed by the king, thus it predominantly represented the landed gentry and other conservatives. From 1915 both men and women had the right of vote for both houses, and also the Landsting was elected by common vote, although indirectly and with a higher age limit than for the Folketing. During the next decades, law-making mainly took place in the Folketing and the Landsting came to be regarded as a superfluous rubber stamp.

Christiansborg Palace, the location of the Folketing chamber since 1849

In 1953, a revised constitution was adopted by popular vote. Among the changes was the elimination of the Landsting and the introduction of a unicameral parliament, known only as the Folketing. Christiansborg Palace (also known by its nickname Borgen, Danish for the castle) has been the domicile of parliament since 1849. The palace is located in the heart of Copenhagen.

Gaining representation in parliament requires only 2% of the vote. With such a low election threshold, a large number of parties are represented in the chamber, making it all but impossible for one party to win the 90 seats necessary for a majority. No party has achieved this since 1901. All Danish governments since then have been coalitions or one-party minority governments. For this reason, a long-standing provision in the constitution allows a government to take office without getting a vote of confidence and stay in office as long as it does not lose a vote of no confidence. One consequence is that, unlike in most other parliamentary systems, a Danish government can never be sure its legislative agenda will pass, and it must assemble a majority for each individual piece of legislation.

Wikisource has original text related to this article: Constitutional Act of Denmark, 5 June 1953

Composition of members

• The Folketing consists of 179 members all elected for a four-year term or until the Prime Minister (via the Queen-in-council) calls for elections, whichever comes first. 175 members are elected in Denmark proper, while Greenland and the Faroe Islands each elect two members separately.
• The constitution does not mention political parties at all, although the electoral act does, and MPs are almost always elected for a party. The only independent who has been elected in modern times is the comedian Jacob Haugaard, but independents, usually unknown ones, are seen at every election. Requirements for standing as an independent candidate are much more lenient than for a new party (signatures from 150 eligible voters), but independents are only allowed to contest in a single district, making it very difficult to gain the needed number of votes for a seat.

Voting system

• The Constitution requires for "equal representation of the various opinions of the electorate", and for regional representation to be secured. The electoral act stipulates the details for this (for the Denmark seats): 135 seats are elected by proportional representation in 10 districts, and 40 supplementary seats are allotted to make out for the difference between district and nationwide vote. The 135 seats are distributed to the parties by the D'Hondt method of the party-list system of proportional representation and the 40 supplementary seats by the Sainte-Laguë method. Each party may choose among a number of methods for how the seats won by that party are to be distributed among the candidates.[8]
• The result is proportional representation; however, in rare cases, the biggest parties may gain one or two seats extra from smaller parties.
• The voter may vote for a party list, one of the candidates on a party list, or an independent candidate.
• Parties (usually district party assemblies) decide on the nomination of candidates before the election. When co-nomination is assigned, candidates are elected according to personal votes. When priority order is assigned, only an extreme number of personal votes can change the rank.
• Parties must either pass the threshold, 2% of the national vote, or gain a district seat to gain any supplemental seats. Though very rare, it is possible for a party to gain a district seat without getting 2% of the national vote. There is also an esoteric third rule that allows a party to be represented, if it has enough votes in two of the three areas that the country is divided into. No party has ever fulfilled this rule without getting 2% of the national vote.
• To stand for election, parties that are not currently represented in Parliament must collect certificates of support from approximately 20,000 voters (the number of valid votes cast in Denmark proper at the latest election, divided by 175—the equivalent of one seat; after the 2007 election the required number is 19,769) and have these individually stamped by the registration office in these voters' municipalities of residence.

Voter requirements

• Denmark has universal suffrage for all citizens over 18 years who live in the realm and who have not been declared incapable of managing their own affairs. The constitution makes it possible to restrict suffrage for convicted criminals and people receiving social benefits, but this option has not been used for several decades.
• All voters who have not been convicted of criminal acts that makes them unworthy for a seat in the parliament, are eligible. The Folketing decides if a member is eligible or not (after his election).

Bertel Haarder (V) making a speech

View from the gallery

Parliamentary privileges

• Members enjoy immunity, meaning that no criminal charges may be brought against an MP, unless he is caught red-handed, provided that the Folketing does not lift the immunity. The purpose of this is to prevent political persecution. In practice, the Folketing has always lifted the immunity when a member has been accused of a crime, usually with the consent of the accused member himself.[9]
• Debates can be conducted behind closed doors, although this has not happened since 9 April 1940, day of the German invasion in WW II.

Ministers

• Ministers may hold a seat in parliament, but they do not need to. Supreme Court judges—according to convention—may not hold a seat whilst also acting as judges.
• Ministers may—even if they are not MPs—demand talking time whenever they want.

Legislating

• Bills may be brought before parliament by members (private member's bills) and ministers. Bills are predominantly brought before parliament by ministers, because they have the Law Office of the Ministry of Justice at their disposal. Instead of putting forward a private bill, the opposition usually put forward a proposal for parliamentary decision, i.e., a short resolution that addresses the subject and directs the relevant minister to propose a bill concerning it.

The 179 members of the folketing are directly elected to four-year terms, subject to calls for early elections. All Danish citizens 18 years or older may vote in legislative elections, which are conducted by secret ballot. Folketing seats are allocated among the various parties using the D'Hondt method of party list proportional representation. A party or electoral alliance must pass the election threshold of 2% of the overall vote to be allocated a seat.

The Speaker is the presiding officer of the Folketing. The Speaker determines which members may speak, and is responsible for maintaining order during debates. The position was created in 1850, and the inaugural holder of the office was Carl Christoffer Georg Andræ. The current Speaker is Henrik Dam Kristensen of the Social Democrats.[21] The Speaker and four Deputy Speakers are elected by MPs at the opening of parliament after each general election and compose presidium of the body.[22]

• Constituencies in Denmark
• Løgting – Faroe Islands (Parliament)
• Inatsisartut – Greenland (Parliament)
• Cabinet of Denmark
• List of Prime Ministers of Denmark
• Elections in Greenland
• Elections in the Faroe Islands

• Official website (in English)
• Media related to Folketinget at Wikimedia Commons
• The Danish Parliament at Google Cultural Institute