Polling stations closed in Greenland on Tuesday in a parliamentary election brought into the international spotlight by U.S. President Donald Trump’s pledge to take control of the mineral-rich island, firing up a debate over its independence.
Voting had been extended by half an hour past the 10 p.m. GMT deadline amid high turnout at several of the 72 polling stations across the Arctic island, where 40,500 people were eligible to cast a ballot.
There were no exit polls. Unofficial election results should be available in the coming hours, but they won’t be certified for weeks as paper ballots make their way to the capital from remote settlements by boat, plane and helicopter.
Since taking office in January, Trump has vowed to make Greenland — a semi-autonomous territory of Denmark — part of the United States, saying it is vital to U.S. security interests. Just last week, he told the U.S. Congress that “one way or the other, we’re going to get it.”
The vast island, with a population of just 57,000, has been caught up in a geopolitical race for dominance in the Arctic, where melting ice caps are making its resources more accessible and opening new shipping routes. Both Russia and China have intensified military activity in the region.
Greenland is a former Danish colony and a territory since 1953. It gained some autonomy in 1979 when its first parliament was formed, but Copenhagen still controls foreign affairs, defence and monetary policy and provides just under $1 billion US a year to the economy.
In 2009, it won the right to declare full independence through a referendum, though it has not done so out of concern living standards would drop without Denmark’s economic support.
“I strongly believe that we will very soon start to live a life more based on who we are, based on our culture, based on our own language, and start to make regulations based on us, not based on Denmark,” said Qupanuk Olsen, a candidate for the main pro-independence party Naleraq.
Inge Olsvig Brandt, a candidate for the ruling Inuit Ataqatigiit party, said: “We don’t need the independence right now. We have too many things to work on. I think we have to work with ourselves, our history, and we are going to have a lot of healing work with us before we can take the next step.”
Independence question ‘put on steroids’
Trump’s vocal interest has shaken up the status quo and — coupled with the growing pride of the Indigenous people in their Greenlandic Inuit culture — put independence front and centre in the election.
In the final debate on Greenland’s state broadcaster KNR late on Monday, leaders of the five parties currently in parliament unanimously said they did not trust Trump.
“He is trying to influence us. I can understand if citizens feel insecure,” said Erik Jensen, leader of government coalition partner Siumut.
Jess Berthelsen, the leader of labour union SIK, said Trump’s threats spurred him to run for the first time in a general election.
“Three months ago, we woke up to a completely different world, we don’t know where we stand,” he told the France 24 broadcaster ahead of the election. “A country that has been our ally … suddenly said it could take our land by force. It’s worrying,” said Berthelsen, who is running as a Siumut party candidate.
‘We won’t be Americans’
Voter Sofia Rossen offered a similar analysis of the situation, saying that while the U.S. and Greenland had previously had a good relationship, that did not mean Greenland wanted to become part of the U.S.
“We are not for sale,” Rossen said, while at a polling station in Nuuk. “We are not American, we won’t be Americans. We are not [Danes], but we are part of the Danish community.”
A January poll suggested that a majority of Greenland’s inhabitants support independence but are divided on timing.
Early on, the election campaign focused on the anger and frustration aimed at historical wrongdoings by former colonial ruler Denmark, according to Julie Rademacher, a consultant and former adviser to Greenland’s government. “But I think the fear of the U.S. imperialist approach has lately become bigger than the anger towards Denmark,” Rademacher said.
Reuters spoke to more than a dozen Greenlanders in Nuuk, all of whom said they favoured independence — although many expressed concern that a swift transition could damage the economy and eliminate Nordic welfare services like universal health care and free schooling.
“We don’t want to be part of the U.S. for obvious reasons: health care and Trump,” said Tuuta Lynge-Larsen, a bank employee and Nuuk resident, adding that this election is especially important.
The island holds substantial natural resources, including critical minerals such as rare earths used in high-tech industries, ranging from electric vehicles to missile systems.
However, Greenland has been slow to extract them due to environmental concerns, severe weather and China’s near-total control of the sector, which has made it difficult for companies elsewhere to make a profit or secure buyers.
Trump softens stance
Trump initially declined to rule out military force, alarming many Greenlanders, although he later softened his stance, stating he would respect the will of the local people and was “ready to invest billions of dollars” if they joined the U.S.
Mikkel Runge Olesen, a senior researcher at the Danish Institute for International Studies, said in his assessment, Trump’s adjusted push is failing to win the support of Greenlanders.
“Right now, he seems to be focusing quite a bit on trying to convince the Greenlanders to [be] actively wanting to join the U.S., but this project of trying to win hearts and minds … it’s not really working,” he told BBC News.
Greenland’s prime minister, Mute Egede, has stressed the island is not for sale and advocated for a broad coalition government to resist external pressure. In an interview aired on Monday by Danish broadcaster DR, he dismissed Trump’s offer as disrespectful, expressing willingness to co-operate with other countries instead.
Denmark’s prime minister has said Greenland is not for sale but made it clear that it is up to the local people to decide their future.
All six main political parties support independence but differ on how and when it could be achieved.