The June 5 general election in Denmark saw a victory for Mette Frederiksen’s Social Democrats, the collapse of the right-populist Danish People’s Party, and a general shift to the left. Yet even amid this positive picture, a fierce debate has ensued about the degree to which the Social Democrats have pandered to the far-right’s agenda, and who is really defending the labor movement’s values.

One of the two main forces to the left of Frederiksen’s party is the Red-Green Alliance (Enhedslisten), which took 7 percent support in the election, electing 13 of 179 MPs in the Folketing. It was established in 1989 by the Danish Communist Party, the Left Socialists, and the Socialist Workers’ Party, and over the past two decades, it has grown from an insignificant fringe party to a consolidated force in Danish politics.

Pelle Dragsted, widely considered to be one of the party’s key theoreticians and leaders, stepped down at this election after his own two terms as an MP. Lukas Slothuus spoke to him about the election results, the formation of a new left bloc, and the undermining of the traditional base of Danish social democracy.