Greenland votes: Independence and Trump's billion-dollar pitch
Greenlanders will elect a new parliament on Tuesday, March 11. The outcome of these elections could influence the island's potential independence from Denmark. U.S. President Donald Trump has announced plans to acquire Greenland, mentioning billion-dollar investments in his latest social media post.
The world's largest island, inhabited by just 56,000 people, will have polling stations open from 9 AM to 8 PM local time (12 PM to 11 PM in Poland). Due to the island's lack of infrastructure and harsh Arctic conditions, no pre-election or exit polls are conducted in Greenland. The first results of Tuesday's election are expected to be known overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday.
Elections in Greenland
Greenlanders are electing 31 representatives to a unicameral parliament (Inatsisartut). They can vote for six parties, including the left-wing Inuit Ataqatigiit (IA) of the current premier Egede and the coalition government’s Social Democratic party Siumut. Both parties advocate for the island's independence.
The third force in the current parliament is the populist party Naleraq, which has long advocated for Greenland's independence from Denmark and the development of the local economy. This group promotes a strong alliance with the United States and advocates for a new defense agreement with the USA, independent of Denmark, as well as economic agreements.
Qulleq is a new party running in the elections. It supports rapid independence and the start of oil extraction on the island.
The Liberal Democrats and the conservative Attasut, traditionally supporting maintaining ties with Denmark, play a more minor role in the current parliament.
One-third of Greenland's GDP comes from grants provided by the government in Copenhagen. Declaring independence would mean losing these funds.
Donald Trump's interest in Greenland
Independence was the central issue in the campaign, and it reignited every time U.S. President Donald Trump discussed acquiring Greenland. Premier Mute B. Egede, advocating for the country's independence from Denmark, stated that his island "is not for sale," emphasizing that Greenlanders will decide their future.
In an interview with the Danish public broadcaster DR, Egede stated that if he remains in power, he will form a government with parties striving for independence. The new cabinet's first task will be to develop a plan to achieve this goal.
Even overnight from Sunday to Monday, as the campaign in Greenland concluded, Donald Trump offered island residents "billions of dollars" in U.S. investments on the Truth Social platform, promising they would become wealthy.
So far, Greenlandic authorities have allowed an economic alliance with the United States, preferring collaboration in areas like the extraction of critical metals, which are becoming more accessible due to melting ice, and infrastructure development.
Greenland primarily relies on fishing and hopes to develop tourism. However, the island faces many social challenges, such as an annual suicide rate of 40-50 individuals. Due to the large distances, social services are costly, and roads do not connect main towns and fishing settlements; transportation occurs by ships, helicopters, or local planes.
The island does not have its own doctors or nurses, so medical personnel are temporarily contracted from other Nordic countries.
The government will keenly observe the election results for the Greenlandic parliament in Copenhagen. Following Trump's announcement of interest in acquiring the island, the Danish government initiated talks with the Greenlandic government about extending autonomy, including in areas such as foreign affairs. Meanwhile, relations between Denmark and the USA have deteriorated following Trump's accusations that Danes are not fulfilling their obligation to defend Greenland.
