Дания Премьер-Министрінің лауазымы

Head of government in the Kingdom of Denmark

The prime minister of Denmark (Danmarks statsminister, , ) is the head of government in the Kingdom of Denmark comprising the three constituent countries: Denmark, Greenland and the Faroe Islands. Before the creation of the modern office, the kingdom did not initially have a head of government separate from its head of state, namely the monarch, in whom the executive authority was vested. The Constitution of 1849 established a constitutional monarchy by limiting the powers of the monarch and creating the office of premierminister. The inaugural holder of the office was Adam Wilhelm Moltke. The prime minister presides over a cabinet that is formally appointed by the monarch. In practice, the appointment of the prime minister is determined by their support in the Folketing (the National Parliament). Since the beginning of the 20th century, no single party has held a majority in the Folketing so the prime minister must head a coalition of political parties, as well as their own party. Additionally, only four coalition governments since World War II have enjoyed a majority in the Folketing, so the coalitions (and the prime minister) must also gain loose support from other minor parties. The current prime minister of Denmark is Mette Frederiksen, since 27 June 2019. Since 2022 her cabinet consists of the Social Democrats, Venstre, and the Moderates.

From approximately 1699 to 1730, the highest ranking non monarchial government official was titled "Grand Chancellor" (storkansler) and from 1730 until 1848, this office was titled "Minister of State" (Statsminister). These titles foreshadowed the modern office of prime minister, however, unlike the current office, the grand chancellor and state minister were not formal heads of government. The king held executive authority as absolute ruler from 1661 until the enactment of a liberal Constitution in the early nineteenth century. The office of prime minister was introduced as a part of the constitutional monarchy outlined in 1848 and signed as the Danish Constitution on 5 June 1849. The new Constitution established a parliamentary system by creating a new bicameral parliament (Rigsdagen) and a Council Presidium, headed by a council president. The Council Presidium is regarded as the predecessor of the modern Prime Minister's Office. However, the modern role of the Monarch is symbolic only. The monarch formally appoints and dismisses ministers, including the prime minister. However, any action of the monarch requires a countersignature from a minister. It is also a principle in Danish constitutional literature that "the power follows the responsibility" (magten følger ansvaret), and the monarch being free from responsibility means they have no genuine power. In the case of appointing ministers, it is the signature of the prime minister. This means that the power to appoint ministers practically lies entirely with the prime minister and not the monarch. Although the country's leading politician, the prime minister is not nearly as powerful as other prime ministers in Europe. This is mainly because it is nearly impossible for one party to get a majority of seats in the Folketing (Parliament), so the government is always either a coalition or a one party minority government. No Danish party has won a majority since 1901, and for much of that time there has not even been a majority coalition. Because of their limited powers, the prime minister is primus inter pares (first among equals). In spite of this, the prime minister has no say with respect to Denmark's autonomous regions, the Faroe Islands and Greenland, while the Folketing on the other hand does, as all laws passed by the Faroese and Greenlandic parliaments must be ratified by the Folketing. There are checks on the prime minister's power. If the Folketing revokes its confidence in an incumbent prime minister, the prime minister must either resign along with the entire cabinet or call a new election. Whenever a prime minister resigns, dies, or is forced from office, the monarch asks them (or, in the case of death, the next available leader in a coalition) to keep the government as a caretaker government until a successor has been elected.

The government offices, including the Ministry of the State of Denmark (Statsministeriet; The Prime Minister's Office), is located inside Christiansborg Palace, along with the Folketing and the courts. The official summer residence of the prime minister is Marienborg, an eighteenth century estate that was acquired by the state. It is situated on the shore of Lake Bagsværd in Kgs. Lyngby, north of Copenhagen. It has served as an official summer residence for ten prime ministers since 1960. Marienborg is frequently used for governmental conferences and informal summits between the government, industry and organisations in Denmark.