Helle Thorning-Schmidt (; born 14 December 1966) is a former Danish politician who was Prime Minister of Denmark from 2011 to 2015, and the Leader of the Social Democrats from 2005 to 2015. She is the first woman to hold either post. Following defeat in 2015, she announced that she would step down as both Danish Prime Minister and Social Democratic party leader. Ending her political career in January 2016, she is the chief executive of the NGO Save the Children.