After he assumed this post, support for SF rose steadily in the polls, and in the 2007 parliamentary election the party received more than 13% of the votes, giving it 23 seats.
[2] His own page at the SF party website describes him as having traveled a great deal as a young man, and says that his experiences in South America and Eastern Europe "were – in different ways – instructive in relation to problems of practical socialism".
[4] His first political position was a seat on the Kolding town council, to which he was elected in 1982[5] and which he retained until 1994, with the exception of two periods (13–28 March 1986; 10 October 1991 – 13 January 1992), during which he was a temporary member of Parliament for Vejle County.
[6] The former press officer for the Conservatives in Parliament, Niels Krause-Kjær, has said about Søvndal: "With the dominance of the TV media, the mastery of the quick, well-timed one-liner is of enormous importance.
[2] In this capacity he met in May 2012 with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, where they announced Denmark's intention to contribute to the Afghan National Security Force, as well as to help complete the transition of power by the end of 2014; agreed on strengthening the U.S.-Danish partnership to prevent and counter terrorism in East Africa; and discussed the potential for stronger cooperation on promoting green growth.
[12] Søvndal called in September 2012 for a reorganization of Danish assignments abroad, saying he wanted more focus on exports to China, India, Brazil, and other growth markets and less on the EU.
[13] Speaking in February 2012 to the European Parliament, he praised the Arab League for its "strong leadership role...in the Syrian crisis".
[2] At a commemoration of the Day of Remembrance for victims of terrorist attacks in March 2012, Søvndal stressed that what is important is "countering terrorism" while "respecting human rights".
[15] He announced in February 2013 that Denmark would continue to work for the release of Danish-Bahraini human rights activist Abdulhadi Al-Khawaja, who was in prison in Bahrain, and called on that country to end its mistreatment of young demonstrators.
[16] In October 2013 Søvndal suffered a heart attack[17] and announced that he would be stepping down as both minister of foreign affairs and as member of the Folketing.
[18] In 2008, Søvndal spoke out on his blog against the radical Islamic group Hizb-ut-Tahrir, calling its members "fools" with "lunatic views" and telling them that if they really want to live in the caliphate or under sharia, they had "come to the wrong country.
[22] During the 2011 election campaign he at first called for full U.N. membership for Palestine, but later changed his position to be in accord with official Danish policy.
[23] After becoming Foreign Minister, he was criticized in December 2011 for having refused to meet Israel's ambassador to Denmark, even though he has already met with representatives of pro-Palestinian groups B’Tselem and Al-Haq.
[3][4] He has said that his role model is Nelson Mandela, "who despite torture, persecution and years of imprisonment retained his humanity and dignity" and was able to "provide leadership for the necessary reconciliation after the brutal apartheid regime".
"Gert was a sharp and rigorous debater who stood steadfast in his ideals of democracy, equality and solidarity" and who "had a great appeal to both the young idealist, the unskilled working class and the progressive scholar".