Analysis from the Arctic

Trump plunged Greenland’s prime minister into ruin

Icebergs in Nuuk harbor, the election is over.(Bild: Gregor Brandl)

Surprise at the elections in Greenland! Former professional badminton player Jens Nielsen (33) came first with his economic course. The previously ruling Prime Minister Egede has to resign. In the end, Trump and his annexation plans may have been his undoing. A "Krone" analysis from the Arctic capital Nuuk.  

"Greenland belongs to the Greenlanders!" said Prime Minister Egede in a "Krone" interview near the port of Nuuk on Tuesday afternoon. When the first results from remote settlements on the world's largest glacier island arrived in the early evening, the Prime Minister's expression became increasingly grim. He would have loved to give himself a present on his 38th birthday, namely re-election.

Towards midnight local time, the massive losses became increasingly clear. His left-wing list Inuit Ataqatigiit lost 15 percentage points and plummeted to 21.4 percent of the vote. His coalition partner Siumut also suffered massive losses.

The Social Democrats ended up with just 14.7 percent and were thus almost halved. The opposition Conservatives (Demokraatit) under Jens Frederik Nielsen were the sensational winners with an approval rating of 30 percent. The nationalists from Naleraq achieved 24.5 percent. 

Demokraatit leader Nielsen celebrated the landslide victory and picked up his guitar.(Bild: AP/Mads Claus Rasmussen)

How did this surprising result, which almost nobody had predicted, come about? In the midst of the geopolitical tussle over Greenland, the inhabitants voted for a change of power. Political observers in the Arctic capital agree that Egede allowed himself to get too caught up between Trump and domestic politics. He has repeatedly stated that he is in favor of complete secession from Denmark.

Sad days for this supporter of Prime Minister Egede with the Greenland flag.(Bild: Gregor Brandl)

The conservatives, who are in favor of a cautious separation from Denmark and want to strengthen Greenland economically in order to be better prepared for foreign interventions of any kind, have won. Nielsen's success should make the government in Copenhagen reasonably happy.

Trump is a loser in the election. His campaign has brought victory to the Democrats, who are in favor of slow independence.

Politik-Analyst Kristian Mouritzen

Analyst Kristian Mouritzen sees not only Egede but also Donald Trump as the clear loser of the election: "His campaign has brought victory to the Democrats, who are in favor of slow independence." So actually the opposite of what he wanted.

At least the White House can be pleased with Naleraq's performance. The nationalists want a break with Denmark. In the meantime, some politicians on the list have even spoken positively about Trump's desires, although the annexation plans are clearly rejected by more than 90 percent of Greenlanders.

It will now fall to the 33-year-old Demokraatit leader Jens-Frederik Nielsen to try his hand at forming the next Greenlandic government. The former professional badminton player has announced that he will reach out to all other parties - including Naleraq. It is unlikely that the two election winners will end up forming a coalition. Their positions towards Donald Trump are too different. With his aggressive rhetoric, he has not managed to hoist his preferred candidate Pele Broberg to the top. However, it has once again caused a great deal of unrest in another country.