The reason why Støjberg loses her seat in the Danish National Assembly is that last week she was sentenced to 60 days in prison in a high court case.
The 48-year-old was found guilty of giving an illegal instruction that asylum seekers who arrived in the country as a couple should be kept separate if the youngest was under 18 years of age.
Partiveteran
Støjberg has been a member of the Folketing for 20 years and she has sat in several governments for the conservative party Venstre.
Earlier this year, she resigned from the Liberal Party, of which she was also deputy leader until last year.
The decision to expel her from the Danish National Assembly was made after four hours of debate.
The vote was undramatic and all parties, with the exception of the Danish People’s Party and Nye Borgerlige, voted for her to lose her seat.
Tried to protect
As soon as Tuesday’s vote was over, Støjberg was asked to leave the hall and was replaced by a deputy.
– I would rather be voted out by my colleagues here in the Folketing because I have tried to protect some girls, than be voted out by the Danish people because I have turned a blind eye, she said in her first comment.
Støjberg is now also losing her salary as a parliamentary politician, and it can also determine whether she gets the opportunity to serve her prison sentence with an ankle brace.
In principle, only convicts who are at work or in education are given a zone with an ankle brace in their own home in Denmark.
Was kept separate
As a result of Støjberg’s instructions, 23 asylum seeker couples were kept separate after arriving in Denmark. In most cases, the age difference was small.
In seven cases, asylum seekers were reported who had suicidal thoughts or tried to take their own lives after the separation.
Støjberg has argued that the instruction should contribute to the fight against forced marriage and child marriage.
– I am punished for trying to help the girls, she wrote on social media after the Supreme Court ruling.
During the last hundred years, there has been only one other Supreme Court case in Denmark. Since 1953, only four other politicians have been expelled from the Folketing.
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