Villy Søvndal
Villy Søvndal | |
|---|---|
Official portrait, 2024 | |
| Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| In office 3 October 2011 – 12 December 2013 | |
| Prime Minister | Helle Thorning-Schmidt |
| Preceded by | Lene Espersen |
| Succeeded by | Holger K. Nielsen |
| Member of the European Parliament for Denmark | |
| Assumed office 16 July 2024 | |
| Leader of the Socialist People's Party | |
| In office 28 April 2005 – 13 October 2012 | |
| Preceded by | Holger K. Nielsen |
| Succeeded by | Annette Vilhelmsen |
| Member of the Folketing | |
| In office 1 August 1994 – 20 December 2013 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 4 April 1952 Struer Municipality, Denmark |
| Political party | Socialist People's Party |
| Spouse(s) | Laila Rifbjerg (div.) Heidi Perto |
| Children | 3 |
Villy Søvndal (born 4 April 1952) is a Danish politician who served as Denmark's Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2011 to 2013. He represented the Socialist People's Party (Socialistisk Folkeparti) in Parliament (Folketinget) from 1994 to 2013. He was selected as party leader in a 2005 vote, succeeding Holger K. Nielsen.
After he assumed this post, support for SF rose steadily in the polls, and in the 2007 parliamentary election the party received more than 13% of the votes, giving it 23 seats. After the election, support for SF continued to increase – up to 17–18% – but in the 2011 parliamentary election the party received only 9% of the vote and dropped down to 16 seats.
In 2008, Søvndal published an autobiography, Villys verden (Villy's World).