Greenland says no to Trump, and the Liberal Party wins a surprise 70% turnout.

CopenhagenThe Greenland parliamentary elections have been completely overshadowed by the continued interference of the US President, Donald Trump, who wants control of the Arctic islandUnder this pressure, Greenlanders voted in an election marked by the ongoing debate over independence and a high turnout of up to 70%. This has led to the need to extend polling station opening hours in the capital, Nuuk.

Of the six parties running in the elections, five advocated cutting ties with Denmark, including the winning party, the liberal Demokraatit, which obtained 30.8% of the vote. This party, which until now had been in opposition and held only three of the 31 seats in the Parliament (Inatsisartut), has seen significant growth in these elections, reaching 21.7 points. The party, strongly focused on developing the economy and investment on the island, advocates long-term independence from Denmark by first ensuring Greenland's welfare state and economy: "We are not going to build the house starting with the chimney," its leader, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, had said during the campaign, referring to the need for good ones.

Specifically, the need to diversify the Greenlandic economy, which currently relies heavily on fish exports and the €522 million annual subsidy from Denmark, has been a key theme in the election campaign, where parties have made proposals to exploit the mining and tourism sectors.

Regarding Trump's interference, the Liberal leader described it as "a threat to our political independence." The party also advocates lower taxes, measures to encourage business creation, and more social assistance for those in need.

The Liberals will form a government that will have to face the onslaught of Donald Trump in the coming years, while also likely seeking to renegotiate the self-government law with Denmark to gain more decision-making power. The second-best-performing party, the populist Naleraq party, obtained 23.7% of the vote. During the campaign, this party advocated signing a free association agreement with the US in exchange for economic and defense protection; all of this, without ruling out agreements with Denmark and the other Nordic countries.

Roadmap to independence

Although this party is advocating for a roadmap toward independence that should begin immediately, within the next four years, its representatives have already stated that they are open to negotiating to form a government with the Liberals. However, the party that won the elections has stated that they do not rule out any alliance.

With these results, Greenland has taken a political turn, with more centrist parties, such as the Inuit Ataqatigiit Socialists (21.4% of the vote), who until now led the government, losing almost half of their votes, along with the Siumut Social Democrats (14.7%). These results, with the two forces that have so far been in government severely punished at the polls, will surely disconcert Denmark, which had hoped for a quick and stable government to address the crucial moment Greenland is facing due to Donald Trump's ambitions. This is the first time in Greenland's 46 years of autonomy that neither of the two historical parties will lead the government. As for Qulleq, the political party that has most embraced the White House's proposals, it only received 0.9% of the vote.