Greenland's pro-business opposition wins election amid Trump control pledge

Greenland's pro-business opposition Demokraatit party won Tuesday's closely watched parliamentary election, beating the incumbent left-wing coalition in a vote dominated by U.S. President Donald Trump's pledge to take control of the island.

Demokraatit, which favors a slow approach to independence from Denmark, secured 29.9% of the votes with all ballots counted, up from 9.1% in 2021, ahead of the opposition Naleraq party, which favors rapid independence, at 24.5%.

Since taking office in January, Donald 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, an idea rejected by most Greenlanders.

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.

"People want change ... We want more business to finance our welfare," said Jens-Frederik Nielsen, Demokraatit's leader and a former minister of industry and minerals.

"We don't want independence tomorrow, we want a good foundation," Nielsen told reporters in Nuuk.

He will now hold talks with other parties to try and form a governing coalition.

The ruling Inuit Ataqatigiit party and its partner Siumut, which also seek a slow path towards independence, won a combined 36% of votes, down from 66.1% in 2021.

"We respect the election outcome," Prime Minister Mute Egede of the Inuit Ataqatigiit said in a Facebook post, adding that he would listen to any proposals in upcoming coalition talks.

Greenland is a former Danish colony and has been a territory since 1953. It