Foreign workers in Denmark are again at the centre of a debate on democratic representation after an Italian resident in Billund wrote an open letter to political parties ahead of the 24 March 2026 Folketing election, arguing that people who live, work and pay taxes in the country should also have a say in who governs it.
DR reported the case of Simone Giuseppe Usseri, an Italian citizen who lives and works in Billund and says Denmark cannot describe itself as a full democracy while a large and economically important part of society remains excluded from parliamentary voting. The story comes as the number of foreign citizens in work in Denmark has risen sharply over the past decade, turning a long-standing legal rule into a more visible political issue.
An Italian resident’s letter has reopened the debate on voting rights in Denmark
Usseri, who also leads the local party Billund Internationals, has addressed an open letter to Danish politicians to argue that international residents deserve some form of representation in national politics. His point is straightforward: many foreign residents contribute to the labour market, pay into the welfare state and build their lives in Denmark, but are still excluded when voters choose the next parliament.
According to the figures cited by DR, 557,526 foreign citizens were working in Denmark last year, roughly double the level recorded in 2013. That growth has made the gap between economic contribution and political participation more visible, especially in municipalities and sectors that rely heavily on international labour.
Why Danish parties still reject a vote for non-citizens in Folketing elections
The political response, at least for now, remains largely closed. Candidates from both Socialdemokratiet and Venstre told DR that they do not support changing the rule for elections to the Folketing, Denmark’s national parliament. Their argument is that parliamentary elections determine who governs the country, and that this decision should remain tied to Danish citizenship.
Christian Rabjerg Madsen, political spokesperson for the Social Democrats, said he does not believe the rule should be changed. Anni Matthiesen of Venstre made a similar point, arguing that it is reasonable to require a Danish passport for a vote that decides who runs the state.
That leaves only a narrower opening in the current debate. Radikale Venstre did not challenge the citizenship rule directly, but said the path to citizenship should be easier for people who already meet the conditions. The party’s argument is that when residents pay taxes and fulfil the legal requirements, access to a Danish passport should not remain unnecessarily difficult.
Foreign residents can vote locally in Denmark, but not for parliament
The Danish system already distinguishes between different levels of democracy. Official information for residents in Denmark states that voting rights depend on both the type of election and citizenship. For Folketing elections, voters must be Danish citizens, aged 18 or older, and permanently resident in the country. By contrast, local and regional elections are open not only to Danish citizens but also to citizens of other EU member states, Iceland, Norway and the UK, as well as other foreign residents who have lived permanently in Denmark for at least four years.
That means many foreign residents can vote on schools, local services and municipal priorities, while remaining excluded from the election that decides the national government, immigration policy, taxation and labour market rules. EU citizens resident in Denmark may also vote in European Parliament elections in Denmark, but that does not extend to the national parliamentary level.
Few European countries give non-citizens a vote in parliamentary elections
Across Europe, parliamentary voting rights for non-citizens remain the exception rather than the rule. Still, there are a few examples that show other models are possible.
In Ireland, British citizens living in Ireland can vote in general elections. In the UK, the rules for general elections are broader than in Denmark: British, Irish and qualifying Commonwealth citizens can vote if they meet the residence and registration requirements. These are specific historical and constitutional arrangements rather than a wider European norm, but they show that citizenship is not the only model used on the continent.
For Denmark, however, the current campaign suggests no immediate change is coming. The issue has entered public discussion because of a concrete personal story and because Denmark’s labour market depends more than before on international residents. But the major parties cited by DR still treat citizenship as the line that separates participation in local democracy from participation in national power.
What the dispute says about Denmark’s democracy and labour market
The dispute is unlikely to reshape the 2026 election campaign on its own, but it touches on a larger question for Denmark and other European countries: how long can democracies rely on growing numbers of foreign workers while keeping national political membership tightly closed.
For now, the Danish answer remains clear. Foreign residents in Denmark may work, pay taxes and in many cases vote locally, but unless they obtain Danish citizenship they cannot vote for the Folketing. Usseri’s letter is unlikely to change the rule before this election, but it has made the contradiction harder to ignore.
