Blue Bloc blues: Venstre stoop to lowest ratings in history

Opposition woes set to continue as Dansk Folkeparti poster boy Morten Messerschmidt is charged in EU fund mismanagement case

Christian Wenande

Apr 19, 2021

Since Venstre lost the 2019 General Election and former PM Lars Løkke Rasmussen stepped down, the party has been in chaos.

Kristian Jensen and Inger Støjberg are just a few of the key figures to flee the party in the wake of Jakob Ellemann-Jensen taking over the leadership reins.

And now an Epinion survey conducted on behalf of DR has revealed that the beleaguered party is facing record low support in the polls.

Just 10.4 percent of voters would support Venstre in an election today – a far cry from the 23.4 percent the party enjoyed in the General Election just two years ago.

A new Pape in town
Meanwhile, Konservative, led by Søren Pape Poulsen, has capitalised on Venstre’s downward trajectory, moving from 6.6 percent in 2019 to 15.5 percent today.

And Venstre can look forward to even more Blue Bloc competition in the coming years.

Right-wing party Nye Borgerlige has already gained serious momentum after sweeping into Parliament two years ago.

And earlier this month, former Venstre legend Løkke Rasmussen announced his return to Danish politics by revealing plans to form a new party.

Messerschmidt’s latest challenge
The Blue Bloc disarray doesn’t end there.

Dansk Folkeparti (DF) has been hemorrhaging voters since it decided against seizing power following a scintillating General Election in 2015 – a key reason why Pernille Vermund decided to found Nye Borgerlige, agree many pundits.

And now DF is facing yet another obstacle, as party poster boy Morten Messerschmidt has been charged with allegedly receiving 98,000 kroner of EU funds in connection with a summer meeting in 2015.

According to the rules, EU funds are not permitted to be used, directly or indirectly, to help finance national parties.

End of the road for future leader?
That news is particularly dire for DF, because Messerschmidt is seen by many as the natural heir to the party throne – particularly given that support for current head Kristian Thulesen Dahl seems to have been waning in recent years.

Until Messerschmidt’s case has been resolved, it is unlikely that he will take over as leader of the party.

If found guilty, Messerschmidt could face prison time of up to 18 months.

He has pleaded innocent to the charges.