The Danish People’s Party (DF) is set to introduce a bill that would make it illegal for political parties to offer money to Members of Parliament in exchange for them giving up their mandates. The proposal is a direct response to the recent controversy surrounding Mike Fonseca and the Moderates party.

The announcement follows revelations in the book “It Costs a Mandate,” which detailed how the Moderates, led by chairman Lars Løkke Rasmussen, allegedly offered Fonseca a severance agreement worth DKK 370,000 in 2023 to resign from the Folketinget (Danish Parliament). Fonseca ultimately rejected the offer and now serves as an independent MP.

“Buying your way to a mandate is completely reprehensible, and it must not be the case that you can simply buy your way to a mandate in the Danish Parliament in the future. That is to undermine democracy,” said DF’s legal spokesperson, Mette Thiesen, to TV 2. The DF argues that such practices undermine the democratic process.

The proposal has garnered support from several other parties, including the Denmark Democrats, the Conservatives, and the Unity List. Peder Hvelplund of the Unity List stated to TV 2, “It is clear that when it is illegal to buy a vote, it should of course also be made illegal to buy a mandate.” These parties agree that buying a mandate should be illegal, similar to buying votes.

Løkke has denied any illegal activity, asserting that the offer to Fonseca, which also included psychological help and crisis management, was made during negotiations about his departure from the Danish Parliament. The negotiations arose after the Moderates learned of Fonseca’s relationship with a 15-year-old girl, a violation of the party’s code of conduct.

The recordings of these negotiations, secretly made by Fonseca, form the basis of “It Costs a Mandate,” which includes transcripts of conversations between Løkke and Fonseca. The book has brought the issue of offering financial incentives for relinquishing mandates to the forefront of Danish politics.