COPENHAGEN : Divisions in Denmark

Danes voting for a new government Wednesday are expected to give a lukewarm endorsement to the incumbent prime minister, Poul Nyrup Rasmussen, a Social Democrat.

Despite an alarmingly high 12.5% unemployment rate, life remains comfortable in what has become one of the world’s richest, most liberal welfare states--a system built by the Social Democrats. The recent election victory by the Social Democrats in Sweden is also expected to improve Rasmussen’s chances for survival.

But if his present four-party, center-left coalition fails to gain a majority, Rasmussen could be forced into the same dilemma as his Swedish counterpart, Ingvar Carlsson: either to cooperate with the radical left, or reach across the political divide to seek informal backing from the conservatives.