A broad coalition of parties in Sorø has agreed to elect Jakob Spliid from the Liberal Party as the new mayor following this week's municipal election. The political shift ends 35 years of Conservative and Social Democratic leadership in the municipality.
Sorø needed a new mayor because Gert Jørgensen from the Conservative Party decided not to run again after 12 years in office. Jakob Spliid becomes the first Liberal mayor since Ib Trojaborg, who served from 1974 to 1990.
The agreement brings together an unusual alliance including the Liberal Party, Denmark Democrats, Danish People's Party, New Right, Social Liberal Party, and the Red-Green Alliance. This diverse coalition suggests traditional political blocs are breaking down in local Danish politics.
Local political observers note Sorø's political climate has been marked by party switches and broken agreements in recent years. The expansion of Frederiksberg School emerged as a key election issue that divided parties and ultimately prevented the Social Democrats from forming a government.
This election represented Social Democrat Anne Madsen's third and final attempt to become mayor. She had brief support for four days in 2021, but that agreement collapsed. This time, negotiations failed because parties couldn't agree on the school expansion plan.
Madsen told local media they proposed a compromise that maintained the planned expansion while allowing for future adjustments if needed. The proposal failed to gain sufficient support from other parties.
The Social Liberals and Red-Green Alliance decided to abandon further negotiations with the red bloc in favor of the blue bloc. Red-Green Alliance representative Eva Flyvholm said at a joint press conference that parties reached agreement on all their priorities, particularly improvements to children's services.
Flyvholm expressed confidence that their voters would understand the decision to join this alliance. She noted voters had been disappointed with both the Social Democrats and Conservatives.
Social Liberal representative Edris Qasimi explained that parties spent several days after the election agreeing on priorities. He described the new mayor as committed and expressed satisfaction with their role as a bridge between the Red-Green Alliance and Liberal Party.
In Tuesday's election, the Liberal Party became the second-largest party with 23.5 percent of votes, representing a substantial increase of 12.9 percentage points. The Conservatives, who previously held the mayor position, dropped dramatically by 19.3 percentage points to just 10.3 percent of votes.
This political shift in Sorø reflects broader trends in Danish local politics where traditional party loyalties are weakening. Voters appear increasingly willing to support new alliances that address local concerns rather than following national political lines. The substantial vote swings suggest Danish municipalities may see more unexpected coalitions forming in coming years.