Mai Villadsen Explained

Mai Minna Villadsen
Honorific-Suffix:MP
Office:Political spokesperson of the Red–Green Alliance
Term Start:10 February 2021
Predecessor:Pernille Skipper
Successor:Pelle Dragsted
Office1:Member of the Folketing
Term Start1:5 June 2019
Constituency1:North Zealand
Birth Date:1991 12, df=y
Birth Place:Kibæk, Denmark
Party:Red–Green Alliance
Alma Mater:Gefion Gymnasium
Term End:22 August 2023

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]

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

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

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.

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. The work consisted, among other things, of training young professional activists in debate and organisation.

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]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Mai Villadsen. 2021-02-16. The Danish Parliament. da.
  2. Web site: 2023-08-22 . LIVE Enhedslisten præsenterer Pelle Dragsted som ny politisk ordfører . 2023-08-22 . DR . da-DK.
  3. News: Rohde . Thomas Søgaard . En »skelsættende« begivenhed fik Enhedslistens nye håb til at diskutere politik midt i matematiktimen . 9 April 2022 . Berlingske . 12 July 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190713182935/https://www.berlingske.dk/politik/en-skelsaettende-begivenhed-fik-enhedslistens-nye-haab-til-at-diskutere . 13 July 2019 . da.
  4. Web site: Mai Villadsen (EL) . Folketinget . 9 April 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220101150229/https://www.ft.dk/da/medlemmer/mf/m/mai-villadsen-(el) . 1 January 2022 . da . live.
  5. News: Morgen . A.B. . Julekalender med Mai Villadsen: "Min farmors generation har kæmpet for mange af de rettigheder, som vi tager for givet i dag" . Altinget . 8 December 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210321170611/https://www.altinget.dk/artikel/julekalender-med-mai-villadsen-min-farmors-generation-har-kaempet-for-mange-af-de-rettigheder-som-vi-tager-for-givet-i-dag . 21 March 2021 . da-DK.
  6. News: Jenvall . Line . Henriksen . Morten . Enhedslistens nye frontfigur hedder Mai Villadsen: Hun er 29 år og har ingen uddannelse. Men hun vil gøre verden til et bedre sted . 9 April 2022 . DR . 10 February 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220326124553/https://www.dr.dk/nyheder/politik/enhedslistens-nye-frontfigur-hedder-mai-villadsen-hun-er-29-aar-og-har-ingen . 26 March 2022 . da.
  7. Web site: Valgte kandidater og stedfortrædere, Folketingsvalg onsdag 5. juni 2019 . Dst.dk . 21 August 2021.
  8. Web site: 10 February 2021. Skippers afløser vandt kampvalg om sin nye toppost . 16 February 2021. TV 2. da-DK.
  9. Web site: Hvem er valgt? Se valgte kandidater og personlige stemmer DR . 2022-11-02 . www.dr.dk . da-dk.
  10. Web site: Hunter . Lena . 2023-08-22 . The Copenhagen Post . 2023-08-22 . The Copenhagen Post . en-GB.