Elections in Denmark

Expert apologizes for comments about right-wing leader's eyes

Left-wing leader and Danish Deputy Prime Minister Troels Lund Poulsen feels "quite shaken," he wrote on X on Friday morning. The right-wing politician, who has taken a break from ongoing government negotiations due to eye surgery, is upset by the content of a podcast from Danmarks Radio.

In the podcast, DR's political commentator Jacob Bruun says that it is a "huge sign of weakness" that the party leader is not participating in the negotiations, adding: "Excuse me if his eye hurts."

"To be honest, now my limit has been reached for what I am going to accept!" Troels Lund Poulsen writes on X, adding that he has come very close to losing his sight due to retinal detachment.

In a response, Jacob Bruun writes that he stands by his opinion, but apologizes for his choice of words and the way he presented the criticism.

“Apologize and get well soon.”


In the Danish election on March 24, the left-wing bloc won 84 seats, the right-wing bloc 77 and the centre-right party Moderates 14 seats. The right-wing has since suffered several defections.
No bloc obtained a majority of its own, giving the Moderates’ Lars Løkke Rasmussen a role as a wave-maker in government formation. 

The election in Denmark — it’s all about the matter

• In the Danish election on March 24, the left-wing bloc won 84 seats, the right-wing bloc 77 and the centre-right party Moderates 14 seats. The right-wing has since suffered several defections.
• No bloc obtained a majority of its own, giving the Moderates’ Lars Løkke Rasmussen a role as a wave-maker in government formation.
• The Social Democrats and the Liberals made their worst elections ever. Parliament is very fragmented with many small or medium-sized parties.
• The government negotiations have been difficult and an increasing number of Danes have expressed support for a centre-right government across bloc boundaries.
• Mette Frederiksen is currently responsible for exploratory work, but so far there have been no breakthroughs.