Mai Minna Villadsen (born 26 December 1991) is a Danish politician who is a member of the Folketing since the 2019 Danish general election.[1]

Mai Minna Villadsen
Villadsen in 2022
Political spokesperson of the Red–Green Alliance
In office
10 February 2021 – 22 August 2023
Preceded byPernille Skipper
Succeeded byPelle Dragsted
Member of the Folketing
Assumed office
5 June 2019
ConstituencyNorth Zealand
Personal details
Born (1991-12-21) 21 December 1991 (age 32)
Kibæk, Denmark
Political partyRed–Green Alliance
Alma materGefion Gymnasium

Villadsen served as the political spokesperson of the Red–Green Alliance from 2021 until 2023. She was succeeded in this role by Pelle Dragsted.[2]

Early life

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Villadsen grew up in the town of Kibæk, which is one of the places in Denmark where the Red–Green Alliance has the lowest voter turnout.[3] She is the daughter of primary school teachers Jørn Sloth Andersen and Lisbeth Ejby Villadsen.[4] Villadsen has mentioned her grandmother, who was a seamstress and active in trade union life, as her inspiration to enter politics.[5]

Villadsen attended Kibæk School from 1997 until 2007 and became a student at Gefion Gymnasium in 2011, but without subsequently completing a higher education.[6]

Career

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From 2013 until 2015, Villadsen was employed as a youth consultant in the trade union HK Denmark, where she worked in organising young people in the professional community and advised members in connection with dismissals.[4]

From 2015 until 2019, she was a political adviser in the Red–Green Alliance. Around the same time, she worked as an external lecturer at think tank CEVEA, and in the period 2015 until 2017 as an external project manager and lecturer at DeltagerDanmark.[4] The work consisted, among other things, of training young professional activists in debate and organisation.[4]

Villadsen was elected into parliament at the 2019 election, where she received 2,572 votes. On 10 February 2021, she became the new political spokesperson for the Red–Green Alliance, after Pernille Skipper.[7][8] Despite the Red-Green Alliance losing four seats at the 2022 Danish general election, Villadsen was re-elected receiving 10,822 personal votes.[9]

On 22 August 2023, Villadsen left office as the political spokesperson of the Red-Green Alliance. Her replacement Pelle Dragsted was hailed as ‘capable, visionary and committed’ as he put forward a revitalised party manifesto.[10]

References

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  1. ^ "Mai Villadsen". The Danish Parliament (in Danish). Retrieved 2021-02-16.
  2. ^ "LIVE Enhedslisten præsenterer Pelle Dragsted som ny politisk ordfører". DR (in Danish). 2023-08-22. Retrieved 2023-08-22.
  3. ^ Rohde, Thomas Søgaard (12 July 2019). "En »skelsættende« begivenhed fik Enhedslistens nye håb til at diskutere politik midt i matematiktimen". Berlingske (in Danish). Archived from the original on 13 July 2019. Retrieved 9 April 2022.
  4. ^ a b c d "Mai Villadsen (EL)". Folketinget (in Danish). Archived from the original on 1 January 2022. Retrieved 9 April 2022.
  5. ^ Morgen, A.B. (8 December 2019). "Julekalender med Mai Villadsen: "Min farmors generation har kæmpet for mange af de rettigheder, som vi tager for givet i dag"". Altinget (in Danish). Archived from the original on 21 March 2021.
  6. ^ Jenvall, Line; Henriksen, Morten (10 February 2021). "Enhedslistens nye frontfigur hedder Mai Villadsen: Hun er 29 år og har ingen uddannelse. Men hun vil gøre verden til et bedre sted". DR (in Danish). Archived from the original on 26 March 2022. Retrieved 9 April 2022.
  7. ^ "Valgte kandidater og stedfortrædere, Folketingsvalg onsdag 5. juni 2019". Dst.dk. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  8. ^ "Skippers afløser vandt kampvalg om sin nye toppost". TV 2 (in Danish). 10 February 2021. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  9. ^ "Hvem er valgt? Se valgte kandidater og personlige stemmer | DR". www.dr.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 2022-11-02.
  10. ^ Hunter, Lena (2023-08-22). "The Copenhagen Post". The Copenhagen Post. Retrieved 2023-08-22.
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