A century of women’s voting rights in Denmark

KVINFO/16.4.2008  On 20 April 1908, the electoral law allowing women to participate in local elections was passed. At the following year’s elections, on 12 March, 127 women were voted into office. In total they won a little over 1% of the seats contested; the highest percentage was in the municipality of Copenhagen where 10 women corresponded to 17.5% of seats, whereas the 23 women returned by the rural districts of Jutland corresponded to only 0.5% of their local authority seats.

Women’s entry into local politics was greeted with much enthusiasm and was celebrated by, for example, the, at the time, widely-reported "festivities" held in Copenhagen City Hall, an event at which all the speakers were – sensationally – women; as one of the organisers said:

“Women have had to listen to men for all these years – and so on this occasion we would like to return the favour!”

In 1913 Lovise Nielsen became the country’s first female chair of a parish council, and in 1950 local politician Eva Madsen became the first female mayor. 

Not enough women in local politics
Another six years were to pass until, in 1915, women were also granted the right to vote in national elections. In 1918 the first four women were elected to the Danish parliament. There have always been more women in parliament than in local authorities. In parliament today, 37% of MPs are women, and 26% in the present government are women. In comparison, 27% of politicians in local authorities are women. 

Women’s representation in the other Nordic countries now stands at over 40%, in national and local politics alike. Denmark is also losing ground to its other European neighbours.

Translation: Gaye Kynoch