UPDATE 08:00
The dust has now (largely) settled and the votes have been counted. While Copenhagen's deputy mayor positions are still being finalised, we know for certain that Frank Jensen (S) will remain the mayor, Enhedslisten's Morten Kabell has landed the powerful position of deputy mayor for technical and environmental affairs, and far-right Dansk Folkeparti's Carl Christian Ebbesen has been promised one of the two deputy mayor positions for the opposition. The other, although it hasn't been decided which, will go to Venstre's Pia Allerslev.
Nationally, Socialdemokraterne proved the exit prognoses wrong and remained Denmark's largest party at the local level. Read our wrap up here.
READ MORE: Enhedslisten flexes new muscle while PM's party defies the polls
UPDATE 02:42
This reporter had hoped to stay awake late enough for the final results in Copenhagen to come through. But at around a quarter to three this morning, and with 88.5 percent of the vote counted, his bed proved too much of a temptation.
Still, it's almost certain that Frank Jensen will continue as mayor and his party Socialdemokraterne stands with 27.9 percent of the vote so far – a figure that has remained relatively unchanged all night as the results trickled through. He and his allies are confident, at any rate, and much earlier in the evening he announced victory.
The results in the rest of the country have long been counted, with Socialdemokraterne winning by convincing margins in Denmark’s second and fourth largest cities, Aarhus and Aalborg respectively.
They almost lost Odense – Denmark’s third largest city – to Venstre after the centre-right party more than doubled their support to 23.2 percent. Support for Socialdemokraterne dropped slightly but still beat Venstre with 28.7 percent. They still haven't settled on a mayor, however, and Venstre could still secure a majority with the right-wing.
Fifth largest city Esbjerg remained firmly in the hands of Venstre who won with a convincing 42.7 percent.
We hope you enjoyed these updates. The Copenhagen Post’s morning shift will continue where I left off.
UPDATE 00:43
Socialdemokraterne rally
Despite dismal exit polls, Socialdemokraterne have secured 29.5 percent of votes nationally compared to 28.1 for opposition Venstre, with 87.3 percent of votes counted.
The centre-left party may yet remain the largest party in local politics if they continue to secure high-than-expected support, especially in Copenhagen where exit polls predicted that Socialdemokraterne would only earn 23.5 percent of the vote – six percent less than 2009.
But with just under a quarter of the votes counted, Socialdemokraterne have secured 28.8 percent of the vote.
UPDATE 00:27
Konservative keep Frederiksberg
The left-wing couldn't pull off the ultimate election coup and displace Jørgen Glenthøj (Konservative) from Frederiksberg. On Facebook he writes: "On behalf of the election coalition I can say that I will be the coming mayor."
Konservative also managed to keep Gentofte Council directly to the north of Copenhagen, another traditional stronghold where they secured an absolute majority of 50.2 percent.
UPDATE 22:50
Frank Jensen remains mayor
Ritzau reports that Frank Jensen from the Socialdemokraterne is staying on as mayor following an agreement with left-wing parties Socialistisk Folkeparti and Enhedslisten.
UPDATE 22:36
Battle over Traffic and Environment Administration
The two political blocks are currently in the middle of tough negotiations to decide which parties gain control of which of the seven administrations.
Leaders of the left-wing bloc Socialdemokraterne are likely hang on to the mayor's office, which automatically brings with it control of the Finance Administration. But the battle is over the second most important adiminstration, the Technical and Environment Administration (TMF), which is currently controlled by Socialistisk Folkeparti but who, due to poor support, will likely have to surrender it.
Opposition leading Venstre is keen to control of the TMF, but so too is the far-left Enhedslisten, which is the predicted to become the council's second largest party, with 20 percent of the vote.
But there are many factors that can determine who ends up taking control. First is the size of the left-wing and right-wing blocs which determines the order in which they get choose an administration. Two parties, Dansk Folkeparti and Radikale, have yet to decide which bloc to give their support to, and they are unlikely to decide until the results are public.
But while the stronger bloc is likely to gain control of the TMF, there are rumours creeping around City Hall that Socialdemokraterne mayor Frank Jensen would actually rather have right-wing bloc leaders Venstre take control of the TMF instead of Enhedslisten – which belong's to Jensen's left-wing bloc – due to its anti-car policies that make the mayor uneasy.
Drama is predicted to ensue.
UPDATE 22:17
Second city, red majority
A coalition of Socialdemokraterne, Socialistisk Folkeparti and Enehedslisten have forecast to capture 17 of the 31 city council seats in the city of Aarhus. The strong finish comes on the back of gains by the far-left Enhedslisten, which will gain as many as three seats. Socialdemokraterne are predicted to lose two seats, while Socialistisk Folkeparti is expected to shed three seats.
The result stands in contrast to Copenhagen, where the city appears to be heading towards a city administration made up of a patchwork of parties from the left-right and centre.
UPDATE 21:48
54.4% voter turnout in Copenhagen
232,906 of 427,940 eligible voters cast a ballot in the this year's Copenhagen City Council election. The 54.4 percent turnout is exactly the same turnout as the 2009 election.
UPDATE 21:05
Konservative lose ground in Frederiksberg
Konservative has controlled Frederiksberg since 1909 and this looks set to continue for four more years though with a weaker mandate. DR predicts the party will lose four of its 12 seats out of a total 25 available. The left-wing Socialdemokraterne aren't likely to wrest control, however, as it is predicted to go from six to four seats and its partner Socialistisk Folkeparti may go from four to three. Konservative will also probably benefit through increased support for fellow right-wing parties Venstre and Liberal Alliance, who are set to win two seats each, up from one and zero respectively.
UPDATE 20:43
The latest exit polls from DR show a clear left-wing surge in Copenhagen as Enhedslisten massively increases its support. But nationally, the right-wing has had a much stronger election.
2009 local election results nationally, compared to the latest exit polls
| NATIONAL | 2013 local elections polls | 2009 local election results |
| Left bloc | ||
| Enhedlisten | 8.1% | 2.3% |
| Socialistisk Folkeparti | 6.5% | 14.5% |
| Socialdemokraterne | 25.3% | 30.7% |
| Centre | ||
| Radikale | 5.9% | 3.7% |
| Right bloc | ||
| Venstre | 27.0% | 24.8% |
| Konservativer | 7.0% | 11.0% |
| Liberal Alliance | 2.7% | 0.3% |
| Dansk Folkeparti | 11.2% | 14.5% |
Copenhagen City Council 2009 election results compared to the latest exit polls.
| COPENHAGEN | 2013 local elections polls | 2009 local election results |
| Left bloc | ||
| Enhedlisten | 20.5% | 10.9% |
| Socialistisk Folkeparti | 10.8% | 22.2% |
| Socialdemokraterne | 23.5% | 29.9% |
| Centre | ||
| Radikale | 12.4% | 8.5% |
| Right bloc | ||
| Venstre | 12.1% | 9.4% |
| Konservativer | 6.1% | 7.0% |
| Liberal Alliance | 5.0% | 0.9% |
| Dansk Folkeparti | 9.6% | 7.7% |
