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Danish ruling party surges after tough coronavirus actions

Ritzau/The Local
Ritzau/The Local - [email protected]
Danish ruling party surges after tough coronavirus actions
Danish Prime Minister Metter Frederiksen in Denmark's parliament last week. Photo: Liselotte Sabroe/Ritzau Scanpix

The Danish government has been rewarded for its rapid and far-reaching moves to slow the spread of coronavirus and cushion the country's economy, with a near five percent surge in opinion polls.

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In the latest opinion poll by Voxmeter for the Ritzau newswire, the Danish Social Democratic party had the support of 31.5 percent of voters, up 4.7 percent in a single week, and the highest share of voting intentions the party has enjoyed since October 2006. 
 
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has taken tough actions, banning gatherings of more than ten people, shutting restaurants, bars, shops and sports facilities, and even closing Denmark's borders against the recommendations of its own public health agency (Sundhedsstyrelsen). 
 
"If we have to wait for full evidence to fight the corona, then it is my clear conviction that we will be too late," Frederiksen said in a speech, explaining why her government decided to go so far so fast, even when there was little medical evidence to support decisions. 
 
According to Anna Christensen Research Director at Voxmeter, the Danish population overwhelmingly supports the government's approach, with 85.2 percent saying that they have confidence in the handling of the crisis, and only four percent saying they did not. 
 
"We can see that the popularity of the prime minister's and the government's handling of the crisis is very, very high," she told The Local. "It's almost the entire population that supports it." 
 
So far, Denmark's tougher approach has not resulted in a lower death tally than in light-touch Sweden next door. 
 
The country's SSI health agency reported that there had so far been 72 coronavirus deaths on Saturday, or twelve per million of population. This compared to 110, or ten per million of population, in Sweden.
 
 
 
 

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