Greenlanders vote with independence path at stake: what to watch

Sanne Wass, Bloomberg News on Mar 11, 2025

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Greenlanders head to the polls on Tuesday in a general election that will determine how and when the semi-autonomous territory may seek independence from Denmark after Donald Trump upended the island’s politics.

While all leading parties are in favor of sovereignty, the winners would get to define the path of the world’s largest island to become its own nation and which countries it may align itself with once that happens.

The vote for the 31-member parliament comes just days after the U.S. president reaffirmed his interest in Greenland, first in a speech to Congress and then on social media. For the 57,000 islanders, the global attention has been baffling, and not always welcome.

Prime Minister Mute B. Egede — whose leftist Inuit Ataqatigiit party was pegged as the winner in a poll from January — has insisted the land is not for sale, as has the Danish government which pays for about a third of the island’s public budget.

Talk of independence “has been put on steroids by Trump,” said Masaana Egede, editor of Sermitsiaq, the island’s largest newspaper. “Everything right now is about independence.” But the U.S. president’s fixation with Greenland has also polarized the population, said Egede, who is not a close relative of the premier.

How do the parties’ views on independence diverge?

It’s about the details of achieving sovereignty.

Prime Minister Egede used his New Year’s speech to urge the islanders to remove “the shackles of the colonial era” and this week told voters he wants a broad-based government to put together a “robust” road map for achieving independence. This would potentially include an agreement with one or more countries “within the Western alliance” that would guarantee Greenland’s security. Still, he hasn’t specified a timeline for sovereignty.

The premier’s current coalition partner Siumut, the legislature’s second-largest party, has indicated it wants to start independence talks with Denmark in the coming four-year term.

Even so, both ruling parties stand to lose ground to smaller fringe forces, including populist Naleraq which wants to break away from Denmark quickly. On the other side of the debate, Demokraatit, which favors a slow approach to sovereignty, is also likely to get more support.

How will the vote affect Trump’s aim to take control of the island?

In a post on his Truth Social account on Monday, Trump said the U.S. is “ready to invest billions of dollars to create new jobs and make you rich — And, if you so choose, we welcome you to be a part of the Greatest Nation anywhere in the World, the United States of America!”

It’s unlikely Trump will succeed in buying or annexing the island. While Greenlanders generally support independence, polls indicate the population is overwhelmingly against the idea of becoming part of the U.S.

Still, many parties favor doing more business with the U.S., and a fast move to independence could strengthen Trump’s hand, because it would likely make Greenland easier to influence.

How have Trump’s comments shaped the campaign?

Trump’s fixation with the territory has split Greenlanders, with anti-U.S. sentiment rising in some parts of the island. Others see it as a welcome boost to the independence movement.

Premier Egede said in the interview with the public broadcaster that the U.S. president is making Greenlanders “feel unsafe” and hasn’t treated them with respect since taking office.

Qupanuk Olsen, a social media influencer running for Naleraq, described Trump’s interest as a “wake-up call” for Greenlanders, giving them confidence to pursue dreams of sovereignty. She hadn’t planned on running for the election until Trump’s bid changed the conversation.

Still, it’s not all about independence and Trump. Anna Wangenheim, a lawmaker with the more moderate Demokraatit who seeks reelection, said many Greenlanders she’s met during the campaign care mostly about issues close to their everyday life, like education, pensions and social services.

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With assistance from Julius Domoney.