Leader of Danish Socialist People's Party steps down

COPENHAGEN (Reuters) - Denmark's Foreign Minister Villy Sovndal said on Friday he would step down as head of the leftist Socialist People's Party to allow a new leader time to settle in before an election due by autumn 2015.

He did not name a successor. Sovndal has headed the party since 2005. He will remain foreign minister.

Denmark's first woman prime minister, Social Democrat Helle Thorning-Schmidt, ended a decade of centre-right rule in September last year. Her "Red bloc" alliance includes the Socialist People's Party and the more centrist Social Liberals.

The government has struggled in opinion polls after what voters see as a string of broken promises.

An opinion poll from Greens for business daily Borsen showed on Friday support for the Socialist People's Party had fallen from 9.2 percent at the last election to 5.7 percent. The Social Democratic Party saw support fall from 24.8 percent to 18.5 percent.

Former prime minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen's Liberal Party advanced from 26.7 percent to 33.1 percent in Friday's poll, which showed the "Red bloc" would win 76 parliamentary seats if an election was held today against 99 seats for the centre-right "Blue bloc".

"The time has come to pass on the baton," Sovndal said. "Now is the time to allow the new head of the party enough time to settle in before the next election."

(Reporting by Mette Fraende; Editing by Janet Lawrence)