Three Experts from Aarhus BSS appointed to new Government Committee on Voting Rights for Danes Living Abroad

Professor Michael Hansen Jensen and Professor Emeritus Jørgen Albæk Jensen from the Department of Law, along with Professor Emeritus Jørgen Elklit from the Department of Political Science, have been appointed to a committee established by the Danish government to examine whether Danes living abroad could be granted extended voting rights in parliamentary elections.

13 June 2025 by Tine Bagger

Globalization and increased mobility across borders have led tens of thousands of Danes to move abroad to live, work, or study for shorter or longer periods. Currently, more than 200,000 Danes aged 18 or older live outside Denmark, and many of them lose their right to vote in parliamentary elections after residing abroad for more than two years. The Voting Rights Committee will explore possibilities for extending voting rights for Danes abroad within the framework of the Danish Constitution.

According to the Constitution, having permanent residence in the Kingdom is one of the conditions for having the right to vote in parliamentary elections. However, the Constitution does not provide a clear definition of what it means to have permanent residence in the Kingdom.

The committee consists of four experts in constitutional and electoral law, as well as civil servants from the Ministry of the Interior and Health, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Ministry of Justice.

The committee includes the following members, three of whom are from Aarhus BSS:

Professor, Dr. Jur. Michael Hansen Jensen (Chair), Aarhus University
Professor Emeritus, Dr. Jur. Jørgen Albæk Jensen, Aarhus University
Professor, Dr. Jur. h.c. Helle Krunke, University of Copenhagen
Professor Emeritus, Dr. Scient. Pol. Jørgen Elklit, Aarhus University
Commissioner Hans B. Thomsen, Ministry of the Interior and Health
Head of Legal Services Vibeke Pasternak Jørgensen, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Legal Advisor Carsten Madsen, Ministry of Justice

The committee's report on the possibility of extending voting rights to Danes abroad is expected to be completed by the end of 2025.

Background
It is estimated that more than 200,000 Danes aged 18 and over currently live outside Denmark. In the most recent parliamentary election in 2022, 2,537 Danes living abroad applied to vote.

In 2003, a committee appointed by the then-government issued a report on voting rights during stays abroad, assessing the constitutional framework regarding the voting rights of Danes abroad. The new Voting Rights Committee will base its assessment on the evaluation made in the 2003 report.