Premiers of Naalakkersuisut 1979-2022

Jonathan Motzfeldt (1938-2010)

Motzfeldt was born into a hunting family in the settlement of Qassimiut near Qaqortoq. He graduated as a teacher from Ilinniarfissuaq Teacher’s Training College in Nuuk in 1960 and graduated as theologian from the University of Copenhagen in 1966. He then worked as a priest in South Greenland until 1979. As co-founder of Siumut, Motzfeldt became a member of the Greenland Provincial Council from 1971 until he assumed the office as Greenland’s first Premier when home rule government was established in 1979. He held this office until 1991 and again from 1997 to 2002. From 1979 to 1988, in 1997 and again from 2003 to 2008, he was also speaker of the Inatsisartut (Parliament).

Motzfeldt’s stature came close to that of a ‘father of the nation’, and he is remembered as one of the politicians who brought the Greenland society from the colonial period to home rule and on to self-government.

Lars Emil Johansen (1946-)

Johansen was born in Illorsuit, Uummannaq, into a politically engaged family. He graduated as a teacher from Ilinniarfissuaq Teachers’ Training College in Nuuk in 1970 and soon after became a full-time politician. Johansen was co-founder of Siumut, member of the Greenland Provincial Council from 1971 to 1975 and member of the Danish Parliament from 1973 to 1979 and again from 2001 to 2011. He was member of Inatsisartut from 1979 to 1997 and again from 2013 to 2021 where he served as speaker. In between he served as Naalakkersuisoq with a variety of portfolios.

From 1987 to 1997, he was party chairman of Siumut, and in parallel with this office, he served as Premier from 1991 to 1997. As Premier, Johansen had a party programme that aimed at creating a strong home rule government that would build a Greenlandic society on Greenland’s own terms. In breaks from politics, he was executive vice president of the government owned Royal Greenland and engaged in private business. He returned to politics in 2001 and represented Siumut first in the Danish Parliament and since in Inatsisartut until 2018.

Hans Enoksen (1956-)

Enoksen was born and raised in Itilleq, where he later learned commerce. In 1995, he was elected to Inatsisartut and used his experience from local politics and his desire to bring prosperity to the outer districts when he took over the chairmanship of Siumut in 2001.

Enoksen was Premier from 2002 to 2009, but resigned as party chairman after losing the election. He left Siumut in 2014 to form Partii Naleraq as he wished to push his core policy priorities with a greater focus on the outer districts. Minister (Naalakkersuisoq) in various coalitions from 2016 to 2018.

Kuupik Kleist (1958-)

Kleist was born in Qullissat, where he grew up with foster parents until the coal mining town closed. He finished primary school in Sisimiut and then went to Denmark where he graduated from Birkerød State School in 1978 and as a social worker from Roskilde University in 1983. In the following years, he held a number of executive positions in the Departments of Education and Foreign Affairs of the Home Rule Government and at the Greenland School of Journalism, after which he became a full-time politician from 1991 to 1995 as Minister (Naalakkersuisoq) in the coalition government between Siumut and IA. He was then elected to the Landsting (Inatsisartut) for the first time in 1995. From 2001 to 2007, Kleist was a member of the Danish Parliament, from 2007 to 2014 he was chairman of IA, and during the same period, from 2009 to 2013, he was Premier of Naalakkersuisut in coalition with the Democrats and Kattusseqatigiit Partiiat. Since leaving politics in 2014, Kleist has been a private consultant and held various public positions of trust.

Aleqa Hammond (1965-)

Hammond was born in Narsaq into a family of hunters and grew up in Uummannaq. In her youth, she travelled around much of the world and, attended the Arctic College in Canada from 1991 to 1993 where she acquired strong language skills. Following a career in both tourism and the ICC, she was elected to the Landsting (Inatsisartut) for Siumut in 2005, and held different government positions.

From 2009 to 2014, Hammond was chair of Siumut, and in 2013‑14 she briefly served as Greenland’s first female Premier of Naalakkersuisut.

From 2016 to 2019, she was a member of the Danish Parliament, and from 2018 to 2021, she was again a member of Inatsisartut. After a few years as a member of the Nunatta Qitornai party, she returned to Siumut.

Kim Kielsen (1966-)

Kielsen was born in Paamiut and was trained as a sailor, after which he sailed for KNI for a number of years. He later followed in his father’s footsteps and became a police officer in Nuuk in 1996. He took leave from the police to start social prevention projects for young Greenlanders, after which he was elected to the Landsting (Inatsisartut) for Siumut in 2005. He was a member of the government from 2007 to 2009, and from 2014, he served as party chairman and Premier of Naalakkersuisut in rapidly changing coalitions. Kielsen has held the position as speaker of Inatsisartut since April 2022.

Múte Bourup Egede (1987-)

Egede was born in Nuuk, but grew up in Narsaq in South Greenland. He attended university in Nuuk from 2007 to 2013, after which he took over the management of the family feedstuff business. He became chairman of the IA youth organisation and in 2015 was called upon to take up a seat in Inatsisartut as an alternate. In 2016, as member of Naalakkersuisut, he was briefly in charge of mineral resources.

Egede was elected to Inatsisartut in 2018, after which he took over as IA chairman. The 2021 elections returned a victory, which gave the party the opportunity to lead Naalakkersuisut for only the second time since 1979.

Further reading

• Education
• Home Rule (1979‑2008)
• Industry and labour market
• Plans in Greenland
• Population and demographics
• Self-Government
• The Unity of the Realm and the Danish State
• Towns and settlements

Read more about Society and business in Greenland