Government and politics in Zealand, Denmark: official figures
At the most recent election of its own council, in November 2021, the Social Democrats won 15 of the 41 seats on the regional council of Zealand with 35.3% of the vote; 22 councillors (54%) were women and 8 parties won seats.
Is Region Zealand merging with the Capital Region?
Region Zealand is joining the Capital Region to form Region Østdanmark, whose 47 councillors were elected on 18 November 2025 for the 2026-2029 term; in 2026 the new council works as a preparatory council.
Source: Region Østdanmark · saved copyWho is the chair of Region Zealand?
The chair of the new Region Østdanmark council, which will govern Zealand together with the capital area, is Lars Gaardhøj (A, Social Democrats).
Source: Region Østdanmark · saved copyWhat were the results of the Region Østdanmark election?
Voters in Zealand and the capital area gave the Social Democrats 10 seats and the Conservative People's Party 7 seats on the 47-member Region Østdanmark council in 2025, out of 1,449,758 valid votes cast across the two regions.
Source: Statistics Denmark (Danmarks Statistik) · saved copyWhat does the Region Zealand regional council do?
The regional council of Region Zealand oversees a budget of DKK 26.1 billion in gross running costs (2025), of which 92% goes on health care.
Source: Statistics Denmark (Danmarks Statistik) · saved copyHow Zealand compares with other regions
Women among regional councillors elected in 2021 (%) (2021)
Zealand ranks 1 of 5, highest first.
| Rank | Region | Women among regional councillors elected in 2021 (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zealand | 53.7% |
| 2 | Central Denmark | 53.7% |
| 3 | Capital Region of Denmark | 48.8% |
| 4 | North Denmark | 48.8% |
| 5 | Southern Denmark | 46.3% |
Social Democrats share of the vote at the 2021 regional election (%) (2021)
Zealand ranks 1 of 5, highest first.
| Rank | Region | Social Democrats share of the vote at the 2021 regional election (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zealand | 35.3% |
| 2 | North Denmark | 35.0% |
| 3 | Central Denmark | 29.3% |
| 4 | Southern Denmark | 25.9% |
| 5 | Capital Region of Denmark | 22.8% |
Members of the regional council (latest election of its own council) (2021/2025)
Zealand ranks 2 of 5, highest first. Capital Region and Zealand: councils elected in 2021; the others: councils elected in 2025.
| Rank | Region | Members of the regional council (latest election of its own council) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Capital Region of Denmark | 41 |
| 2 | Zealand | 41 |
| 3 | Southern Denmark | 31 |
| 4 | Central Denmark | 31 |
| 5 | North Denmark | 25 |
More on Zealand: overview · economy and jobs · health · education and schools · poverty and living standards · government budget · Denmark
Sources
- Statistics Denmark (Danmarks Statistik): Elections to regional councils by region and party: valid votes, candidates and elected members by sex (StatBank table AKVA3), 2005-2025, read 24 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 d25b93cfa0ab…)
- Region Østdanmark: Regionsrådet 2026-2029: Regionsrådets medlemmer (members of the regional council of Region Østdanmark), read 24 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 ede8ec50f734…)
- Statistics Denmark (Danmarks Statistik): Regions' accounts by function, type of account and kind (StatBank table REGR31), 2016-2025, DKK 1,000 and DKK per resident, read 24 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 e671b0011dae…)
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