Jacob Harris, a former member of the Folketing elected for Borgernes Parti, sparked widespread condemnation from Danish politicians after making a Holocaust-related joke about Jews and pizza ovens during a parliamentary debate on the so-called koranloven.
According to TV 2 Nyheder, multiple members of the Folketing publicly condemned the remark as wholly unworthy of the parliamentary chamber. The incident drew immediate reactions from across the political spectrum, with several MPs describing the joke as deeply offensive and incompatible with democratic norms.
Harris had been elected to the Folketing as a representative for Borgernes Parti but was excluded from the party shortly after his election, as reported by Berlingske. His Holocaust joke in the chamber intensified scrutiny of his conduct as a parliamentarian.
Holocaust Joke Draws Condemnation in the Folketing
The remark was made during debate on the koranloven, a piece of legislation that had itself generated significant political controversy in Denmark. According to TV 2 Nyheder, Harris delivered the Holocaust-related joke from the floor of the Folketing, where it was heard by fellow MPs and subsequently reported across Danish media.
SF’s Karsten Hønge was among the politicians who publicly responded to the incident. According to his public Facebook post cited in Danish media coverage, Hønge condemned the joke in direct terms, reflecting a broader parliamentary consensus that the remarks were unacceptable.
Berlingske identified Harris by name and provided background on his political trajectory, including his exclusion from Borgernes Parti. The episode raised questions about accountability mechanisms within the Folketing when individual members make statements widely judged to be hateful or inappropriate.
Political Reaction and Context
The condemnation was swift and came from named parliamentarians across multiple parties, as reported by TV 2 Nyheder. Politicians described the remark as one that had no place in democratic discourse and called on Harris to account for his words.
The koranloven debate had already placed questions of religion, minority rights, and free expression at the center of Danish political discussion. Harris’s joke injected an additional dimension into that debate, drawing particular concern given the historical weight of Holocaust references.
Danish and European institutions, including the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights, have tracked antisemitism across member states as an ongoing policy concern. The incident in the Folketing added a domestic political dimension to that broader conversation.
Jacob Harris and Borgernes Parti
Jacob Harris was elected to the Folketing representing Borgernes Parti, a small political party. According to Berlingske, he was excluded from the party relatively quickly after his election, leaving him to sit as an independent member of parliament.
His exclusion from Borgernes Parti preceded the Holocaust joke incident, meaning he was already sitting outside any parliamentary group when the remarks were made. That status limited the formal political consequences available to other parties seeking to respond through party channels.
The Folketing does not have a formal mechanism to expel an elected member, meaning Harris retained his seat despite the condemnation from colleagues. TV 2 Nyheder reported that politicians across the spectrum nonetheless made their disapproval clear through public statements and media appearances.
What Happens Next
As of publication, no formal legal proceedings related to the joke had been confirmed in available Danish reporting. Whether the remarks meet the threshold for prosecution under Danish hate speech provisions remains a question for prosecutors to assess.
The incident is likely to sustain debate about standards of conduct in the Folketing and about how Danish institutions respond when elected representatives make remarks that many consider antisemitic. Coverage from TV 2 Nyheder and Berlingske continues to serve as the primary sourced record of the episode.
