head of government: Prime Minister Poul Nyrup RASMUSSEN (since 25 January 1993)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister and approved by Parliament
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch
Legislative branch: unicameral Parliament or Folketing (179 seats, including 2 from Greenland and 2 from the Faroe Islands; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 11 March 1998 (next to be held by March 2002)
election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - progovernment parties: Social Democratic Party 65, Socialist People's Party 13, Social Liberal Party 7, Red-Green Unity List 5; opposition: Liberal Party 43, Conservative Party 17, Danish People's Party 13, Center Democratic Party 8, Christian People's Party 4, Progress Party 4; seats by party as of 1 January 2001: government coalition parties - Social Democrats 63, Social Liberals 7; pro-government parties - Socialist People's Party 13, Unity List 5; opposition - Liberals 42, Conservatives 16, Danish People's Party 13, Center Democrats 8, Christian People's Party 4, Progress Party 4 (now named Freedom 2000); does not include the 4 overseas seats
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the monarch for life)
Political parties and leaders: Center Democratic Party [Mimi
JAKOBSEN]; Christian People's Party [Jann SJURSEN]; Conservative
Party (sometimes known as Conservative People's Party) [Bendt
BENDTSEN]; Danish People's Party [Pia KJAERSGAARD]; Liberal Party
[Anders Fogh RASMUSSEN]; Progress Party (now named Freedom 2000)
[Kim BEHNKE]; Social Democratic Party [Poul Nyrup RASMUSSEN]; Social
Liberal Party (sometimes called the Radical Left) [Marianne JELVED,
leader; Johannes LEBECH, chairman]; Socialist People's Party [Holger
K. NIELSEN]; Red-Green Unity List (bloc includes Left Socialist
Party, Communist Party of Denmark, Socialist Workers' Party)
[collective leadership]
Political pressure groups and leaders: NA
International organization participation: AfDB, AsDB, Australia
Group, BIS, CBSS, CCC, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO,
G- 9, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC,
IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM,
ISO, ITU, MONUC, NATO, NC, NEA, NIB, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD,
OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMEE,
UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOGIP, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNTAET, UNTSO, UPU,
WEU (observer), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC