Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen's ruling coalition has won Tuesday's parliamentary election, but he will need backing from a pro-immigrant rights party to get legislation through parliament.
Official results give Rasmussen's coalition of liberal and conservative parties 89 seats - one shy of a majority. The opposition Social Democrats won control of 81 seats.
Mr. Rasmussen campaigned on a promise to improve Denmark's welfare system without raising taxes.
But he will need the support in parliament of the five seats won by the newly-formed New Alliance Party, led by Syrian-born Muslim immigrant Naser Khader.
He founded the party to counter the influence of the far-right Danish People's Party, known for its anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim rhetoric.
Prime Minister Rasmussen has been in power since 2001. He called elections 15 months early, hoping to take advantage of currently high approval ratings.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.
