Pia Merete Kjærsgaard (; born 23 February 1947) is a Danish politician who was Speaker of the Danish Parliament from 2015 to 2019, and former leader of the Danish People's Party. She is a co-founder of the Danish People's Party, and led the party from its creation in 1995 to 2012. She previously led the Progress Party from 1985 until founding the People's Party in 1995. She has become one of the best-known politicians in Denmark during recent years, both for her consistent and vocal stance against

multiculturalism Multiculturalism is the coexistence of multiple cultures. The word is used in sociology, in political philosophy, and colloquially. In sociology and everyday usage, it is usually a synonym for ''Pluralism (political theory), ethnic'' or cultura ...

and immigration, and for her parliamentary support for the center-right governments of

Anders Fogh Rasmussen Anders Fogh Rasmussen (; born 26 January 1953) is a Danish politician who was the prime minister of Denmark from November 2001 to April 2009 and the Secretary General of NATO, secretary general of NATO from August 2009 to October 2014. He became ...

and Lars Løkke Rasmussen from 2001 to 2011. Her success has been an inspiration for anti-immigration and anti-Islamic movements throughout Europe. On 7 August 2012, Kjærsgaard announced her resignation from the leader position of the Danish People's Party. She appointed Kristian Thulesen Dahl as her successor, and he took office on 12 September 2012, promising to maintain the course laid out by Kjærsgaard.

Early life

Kjærsgaard was born in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

to Poul Kjærsgaard, a paint merchant, and Inge Munch Jensen, a housewife. After completing Danish Folkeskole Education in 1963, she attended the Commercial School in Copenhagen (1963–1965). From 1963 to 1967, she worked as a home care assistant for the elderly in

Gentofte Gentofte () is a district of Gentofte Municipality in the northern suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark. Major landmarks include Gentofte Town Hall, Gentofte Hospital and Gentofte Church. Gentofte Lake with surrounding parkland and nature reserves form ...

. From 1978 to 1984, she was employed as an office assistant in connection with insurance and advertising activities.. Accessed on 29 June 2019.

Political career

Member of Parliament

Kjærsgaard began her political career as the Progress Party's candidate in the Ryvang nomination district (1979–1981), followed by the

Ballerup Ballerup is a Danish town, seat of the Ballerup Municipality, in the Region Hovedstaden. There are approximately 25 schools in Ballerup Municipality. Ballerup has its own educational institution specialized in the study, training and research o ...

and Gladsaxe nomination district (1981–1983), the

Hvidovre Hvidovre is the main town in Hvidovre Municipality, Denmark. The town, a suburb of Copenhagen, is about 10 km southwest of the capital's center. It is the 2nd biggest suburb of Copenhagen, only beaten by Frederiksberg. History Hvidovre has ...

nomination district (1983–1984), and finally, the

Middelfart Middelfart is a town in central Denmark, with a population of 16,749 . The town is the municipal seat of Middelfart Municipality on the island of Funen (). Etymology The name Middelfart, first recorded as "Mæthælfar" in Valdemar's Census Book ...

nomination district (1984–1995). In 1984, while still with the Progress Party, she secured her first seat in the

Folketing The Folketing ( , ), also known as the Parliament of Denmark or the Danish Parliament in English, is the unicameral national legislature (parliament) of the Kingdom of Denmark — Denmark proper together with the Faroe Islands and Greenland. E ...

(Danish parliament), representing the Copenhagen County constituency (10 January 1984 – 8 September 1987). She next represented the Funen County constituency (8 September 1987 – 6 October 1995). In 1995, as things were growing increasingly chaotic and anarchic in the Progress Party, Kjærsgaard broke away to co-found the Danish People's Party (DPP). She stood as the DPP candidate in the

Glostrup Glostrup is a Denmark, Danish town in Capital Region of Denmark, Region Hovedstaden, forming one of the Western suburbs (Copenhagen), western suburbs of Copenhagen. It is the administrative seat of Glostrup Municipality, with an estimated populati ...

nomination district in 1997, followed by the

Hellerup Hellerup () is a very affluent district of Gentofte Municipality in the suburbs of Copenhagen, Denmark. The most urban part of the district is centred on Strandvejen and is bordered by Østerbro to the south and the Øresund to the east. It compr ...

and Gentofte nomination district (1997–2005). As a DPP candidate, she won a seat in the Folketing, representing the Funen County constituency (6 October 1995 – 11 March 1998). As support for the Progress Party subsequently dwindled away, the DPP grew. By 2001, it had become the third largest party in the Folketing, securing 12% of the vote. In the 2005 election, the DPP's share grew to 13.2%, with Kjærsgaard receiving 38,347 "personal votes", second to only the

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Speaker of the Folketing

On 3 July 2015, following the success of Kjærsgaard's party in the June 2015 parliamentary election, she was elected the first female speaker of the

(but not the first female speaker in ''parliament'' since, in 1950 when Denmark still had a bicameral system, Ingeborg Hansen became the first Danish female parliamentary speaker when she was elected speaker of the Landsting). Kjærsgaard was proposed both by the four parties supporting Lars Løkke Rasmussen's new government, and from the opposition by the

Social Democrats Social democracy is a social, economic, and political philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy and a gradualist, reformist, and democratic approach toward achieving social equality. In modern practice, s ...

and the Greenlandic

Siumut Siumut (SIU, ; ; ) is a political party in Greenland in the social democratic tradition. Since the establishment of home rule in 1979, it has been the dominant party in Greenland. Siumut is led by Erik Jensen, who beat the then-incumbent Prime ...

The Danish People's Party

The Danish People's Party advocates a primarily

nationalist Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation,Anthony D. Smith, Smith, A ...

and nativist platform, and is, in that regard, aligned ideologically with other European

far right Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and Nativism (politics), nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on ...

parties. The DPP's platform also includes toughening the criminal code and supporting social welfare policies that have traditionally been championed by the center-left

. The DPP achieved considerable success in the 2001 elections, becoming the third largest party in the

. As such, the DPP was able to provide key parliamentary support for the center-right, Liberal-

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

minority government A minority government, minority cabinet, minority administration, or a minority parliament is a government and cabinet formed in a parliamentary system when a political party or coalition of parties does not have a majority of overall seats in ...

led by

. In this capacity the DPP was able to push through many of its platform's policies. In both the

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

and the 2007 election the DPP kept its position as third largest in the

and was thus able to maintain its substantial role in policy-setting through both the remainder of

's Liberal-Conservative government and through that of successor Lars Løkke Rasmussen.

Political positions

Kjærsgaard's most outspoken political goals are to limit immigration to

Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...

, that society should take better care of the elderly, and that Denmark should maintain its sovereignty, especially with regards to the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

. In the euro referendum of 2000 she campaigned successfully against the adoption of the

Euro The euro (currency symbol, symbol: euro sign, €; ISO 4217, currency code: EUR) is the official currency of 20 of the Member state of the European Union, member states of the European Union. This group of states is officially known as the ...

. Her view on immigration has often led to her being compared to politicians such as

Jean-Marie Le Pen Jean Louis Marie Le Pen (20 June 1928 – 7 January 2025), commonly known as Jean-Marie Le Pen (), was a French politician, lawyer and activist. He founded the far-right National Front (now National Rally) party and served as the party's presi ...

in France and

Pim Fortuyn Wilhelmus Simon Petrus Fortuijn, known as Pim Fortuyn (; 19 February 1948 – 6 May 2002), was a Dutch politician, author, civil servant, businessman, sociologist and academic who founded the party Pim Fortuyn List (Lijst Pim Fortuyn or LPF) in ...

in The Netherlands. She is also known to be an ardent supporter of

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

's bid to gain admission to the

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a list of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations which coordinates responses to international public health issues and emergencies. It is headquartered in Gen ...

and the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

Controversies

Assault and accusations

In 1998, Kjærsgaard was assaulted by members of an angry mob during a demonstration by the far left autonome movement in the

Nørrebro Nørrebro (, ) is one of the 10 official districts of Copenhagen Municipality, Denmark. It is northwest of the city centre, beyond the location of the old Northern Gate (''Nørreport''), which, until dismantled in 1856, was near the current N ...

district of Copenhagen. In 1999, accusations of nepotism were levied against the DPP after it was revealed that Kjærsgaard's husband, Henrik Thorup, had been paid by the party as an independent consultant for over two years. The accusations came from parties on both sides of the political spectrum. The DPP refused to reveal Thorup's salary and defended its actions, claiming that Pia Kjærsgaard's husband was the right man for the job and that his employment had nothing to do with his marriage to the party leader.

Criminal cases

In 2001, Kjærsgaard, in the DPP's weekly newsletter, referred to Muslims as people who "...lie, cheat and deceive." Kjærsgaard was subsequently reported to the police by Denmark's Center for Racial Discrimination, for making racist remarks. Police declined to prosecute Kjærsgaard, stating that there was no reason to believe that her statement violated any laws regarding racism. In 2002, Kjærsgaard was fined DKK 3,000 for threatening a woman with

pepper spray Pepper spray, oleoresin capsicum spray, OC spray, capsaicin spray, mace, or capsicum spray is a Tear gas, lachrymator (tear gas) product containing as its active ingredient the chemical compound capsaicin, which irritates the eyes with burning ...

, the use of which is illegal in Denmark. Kjærsgaard said she pulled out the spray after feeling 'intimidated and threatened' by the woman's behaviour. Kjærsgaard subsequently proclaimed her intention to lobby for a change in weapon possession legislation. In 2003, Kjærsgaard lost a

libel Defamation is a communication that injures a third party's reputation and causes a legally redressable injury. The precise legal definition of defamation varies from country to country. It is not necessarily restricted to making assertions ...

suit in the

Danish Supreme Court The Supreme Court (, lit. ''Highest Court'', , ) is the supreme court and the third and final instance in all civil and criminal cases in the Kingdom of Denmark. It is based at Christiansborg Palace in Copenhagen which also houses the Danish P ...

against Karen Sunds, an anti-EU activist, who had characterized Kjærsgaard's viewpoints as

racist Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one Race (human categorization), race or ethnicity over another. It may also me ...

. The Court ruled that Sunds' remarks had only implied that Kjærsgaard had a negative opinion of immigrants, and were not properly interpreted as an accusation of espousing biologically grounded racism or Nazi racial theory.

Personal life

In 1967, Kjærsgaard married Henrik Thorup, an insurance underwriter. Thorup went on to become a chairperson and regional council member in the DPP, and currently works as a government accountant. The couple has two children, a daughter named Nan and a son named Troels.

Honours

Order of the Dannebrog, Commander 1st Class (2 October 2018) * Ordre national du Merite GC ribbon

National Order of Merit, Grand Cross (28 August 2018) * BEL Kroonorde Grootkruis BAR

Order of the Crown, Grand Cross (28 March 2017) * ISL Icelandic Order of the Falcon - Grand Cross BAR

Order of the Falcon, Grand Cross (24 January 2017) * The Nordic Blue Berets Medal of Honour ribbon

Nordic Blue Berets Medal of Honour, Gold * MEX Orden del Aguila Azteca 2011 Insignia BAR

Order of the Aztec Eagle The Mexican Order of the Aztec Eagle () forms part of the Mexican Honors System and is the highest Mexican order awarded to foreigners. History It was created by decree on December 29, 1933, by President Abelardo L. Rodríguez as a reward to ...

Order of Brilliant Star

Bibliography

*''Fordi jeg var nødt til det'' (2013, co-author) *''Digteren og partiformanden'' (2006, co-author) *''... men udsigten er god - midtvejdserindringer'' (1998)

References

External links