Alexander Pechtold (born 16 December 1965) is a retired Dutch politician and art historian. He is a member of
Democrats 66
Democrats 66 (; abbreviated D66, ) is a Social liberalism, social liberal List of political parties in the Netherlands, political party in the Netherlands, which positions itself in the Centrism, centre of the Left–right political spectrum, p ...
.
Pechtold studied
Archaeology
Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...
and
History of Dutch Art at the
Leiden University
Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; nl, Universiteit Leiden) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. The university was founded as a Protestant university in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince o ...
obtaining a
Master of Arts
A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...
degree. Pechtold worked as an auctioneer in
The Hague
The Hague ( ; nl, Den Haag or ) is a city and municipality of the Netherlands, situated on the west coast facing the North Sea. The Hague is the country's administrative centre and its seat of government, and while the official capital of ...
from July 1992 until June 1996 and as an
Alderman
An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many Jurisdiction, jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council membe ...
in Leiden from June 1996 until October 2003. Pechtold served as
Chairman of the Democrats 66 from 16 November 2002 until 31 March 2005. In September 2003 Pechtold was nominated as the next
Mayor of Wageningen taking office on 1 October 2003. Pechtold was appointed as
Minister without Portfolio for the Interior in the
Cabinet Balkenende II following a
cabinet reshuffle
A cabinet reshuffle or shuffle occurs when a head of government rotates or changes the composition of ministers in their cabinet, or when the Head of State changes the head of government and a number of ministers. They are more common in parlia ...
taking office on 31 March 2005. After
Party Leader
In a governmental system, a party leader acts as the official representative of their political party, either to a legislature or to the electorate. Depending on the country, the individual colloquially referred to as the "leader" of a political ...
Boris Dittrich announced he was stepping down, Pechtold announced his candidacy and was
elected as his successor on 24 June 2006. The Cabinet fell just a year later and he resigned on 3 July 2006.
For the
election of 2006 Pechtold served as ''
Lijsttrekker'' (top candidate) and was elected as a
Member of the House of Representatives and became
Parliamentary leader on 30 November 2006. For the
elections of 2010,
2012
File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...
and
2017
File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...
Pechtold served again as ''Lijsttrekker'' and following a successful
cabinet formation
Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to:
Furniture
* Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers
* Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets
* Filing ...
in 2017 with the
Conservative-Liberals and the
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
-
Democrats formed the
Cabinet Rutte III
The third Rutte cabinet was the cabinet of the Netherlands from 26 October 2017 until 10 January 2022 (since 15 January 2021 demissionary). It was formed by a coalition government of the political parties People's Party for Freedom and Democra ...
with Pechtold opting to remain as Parliamentary leader. In October 2018 Pechtold unexpectedly announced his retirement from national politics and stepped down as Leader and Parliamentary leader on 10 October 2018.
Early life
Alexander Pechtold was born on 16 December 1965 in
Delft
Delft () is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, Netherlands. It is located between Rotterdam, to the southeast, ...
in the
Dutch province of
South Holland
South Holland ( nl, Zuid-Holland ) is a province of the Netherlands with a population of over 3.7 million as of October 2021 and a population density of about , making it the country's most populous province and one of the world's most densely ...
. Pechtold and his elder brother Roland Pechtold grew up in the village of
Rhoon
200px, Castle Rhoon
200px, frameless
Rhoon is a village that borders the municipality of the city of Rotterdam, South Holland, the Netherlands.
According to its history it was established in 1199 and was ruled by the ''lords of Duiveland''. ...
. He went to a
Lyceum in
Rotterdam
Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...
. Pechtold studied
art history
Art history is the study of aesthetic objects and visual expression in historical and stylistic context. Traditionally, the discipline of art history emphasized painting, drawing, sculpture, architecture, ceramics and decorative arts; yet today ...
and
archaeology
Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...
with a specialization in
17th-century painting at the
Leiden University
Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; nl, Universiteit Leiden) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. The university was founded as a Protestant university in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince o ...
, obtaining a
Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
and a
Master of Arts
A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...
degree in 1996. During that time Pechtold obtained certification as an
auctioneer
An auction is usually a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bids, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder or buying the item from the lowest bidder. Some exceptions to this definition ex ...
, and worked for the ''Van Stockum's Veilingen'' during his studies.
Politics
Party chair
Pechtold became a member of the
Democrats 66
Democrats 66 (; abbreviated D66, ) is a Social liberalism, social liberal List of political parties in the Netherlands, political party in the Netherlands, which positions itself in the Centrism, centre of the Left–right political spectrum, p ...
(D66) party in 1989. He was elected as a
Municipal councillor
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...
in
Leiden
Leiden (; in English and archaic Dutch also Leyden) is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. The municipality of Leiden has a population of 119,713, but the city forms one densely connected agglomeration wit ...
in 1994, and became an
alderman
An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many Jurisdiction, jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council membe ...
in 1996. On 16 November 2002 he was elected as
Chairman of the D66. Pechtold was tasked with reforming the party after its disastrous results in the
general election of 2002, and preparing for the upcoming
election of 2003.
Mayor of Wageningen
On 1 October 2003, Pechtold was appointed Mayor of
Wageningen
Wageningen () is a municipality and a historic city in the central Netherlands, in the province of Gelderland. It is famous for Wageningen University, which specialises in life sciences. The municipality had a population of in , of which many t ...
; he remained Chairman of the D66.
Minister for Government Reform and Kingdom Relations
Thom de Graaf
Thomas Carolus "Thom" de Graaf (;''Thomas'' in isolation: . born 11 June 1957) is a Dutch politician of the Democrats 66 (D66) party and jurist. He is the Vice-President of the Council of State since 1 November 2018.
De Graaf attended the Ci ...
, the D66
Deputy Prime Minister
A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...
and
Minister for Government Reform and Kingdom Relations in the
Second Balkenende cabinet, resigned on 23 March 2005 after the introduction of democratically elected mayors had been rejected in the
Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
. The proposal was especially important; it had become a symbol of the government reform that the D66 had wanted since the party's creation. Pechtold was asked to succeed him as Minister. Pechtold resigned as Chairman and Mayor the same day that he took office as the new Minister for Government Reform and Kingdom Relations, on 31 March 2005.
On 29 June 2006 the D66 retracted its support for the Second Balkenende cabinet. The next day,
Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
Jan Peter Balkenende
Jan Pieter "Jan Peter" Balkenende Jr. (; born 7 May 1956) is a Dutch politician of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) party and jurist who served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 22 July 2002 to 14 October 2010.
Balkenende studied H ...
offered the resignation of the full cabinet to
Queen Beatrix. Pechtold resigned as Minister for Government Reform and Kingdom Relations on 3 July 2006. His fellow D66 cabinet member
Laurens Jan Brinkhorst, the Deputy Prime Minister and
Minister of Economic Affairs, resigned on 7 July 2006.
House of Representatives
Pechtold was elected the Leader of the D66 on 24 June 2006 in the
leadership election of 2006, defeating
Lousewies van der Laan
Louse Wies Sija Anne Lilly Berthe "Lousewies" van der Laan (born 18 February 1966) is a retired Netherlands, Dutch politician of the Democrats 66 (D66) party and jurist.
Life before politics
In her youth, Van der Laan lived in Belgium, Germany, ...
, the party's
Parliamentary leader in the
House of Representatives. Van der Laan had only a few months earlier succeeded
Boris Dittrich, who had resigned as party leader and parliamentary leader in the House of Representatives on 3 February 2006.
In 2007 the parliamentarian press chose Pechtold with 31% of the votes as the "Dutch politician of the year 2007".
For the
Dutch general election of 2006 Pechtold became ''
lijsttrekker'' (top candidate) and the
Democrats 66
Democrats 66 (; abbreviated D66, ) is a Social liberalism, social liberal List of political parties in the Netherlands, political party in the Netherlands, which positions itself in the Centrism, centre of the Left–right political spectrum, p ...
lost three seats and became an opposition party. For the
Dutch general election of 2010, Pechtold again as
Lijsttrekker won ten seats but the
Democrats 66
Democrats 66 (; abbreviated D66, ) is a Social liberalism, social liberal List of political parties in the Netherlands, political party in the Netherlands, which positions itself in the Centrism, centre of the Left–right political spectrum, p ...
remained an opposition party. With the following
Dutch general election of 2012, Pechtold again as ''lijsttrekker'' won two seats with the
Democrats 66
Democrats 66 (; abbreviated D66, ) is a Social liberalism, social liberal List of political parties in the Netherlands, political party in the Netherlands, which positions itself in the Centrism, centre of the Left–right political spectrum, p ...
again remaining an opposition party.
During the
Fourth Balkenende cabinet administration Pechtold served as government opposition leader. After the
Dutch elections of 2010, the D66 won seven-seats in the
House of Representatives which journalists claimed was due to Pechtolds leadership during the
Fourth Balkenende cabinet time. After the
2010 Dutch cabinet formation
Following the Dutch general election of 2010, held on 9 June, a process of cabinet formation started, which typically involves three phases:
# exploring with which parties to form a coalition,
# negotiating to draft a coalition agreement (Dutch: ...
the D66 again remained in opposition. In 2012, Pechtold published ''Henk, Ingrid, & Alexander'', which ostensibly aimed to break through the
populism
Populism refers to a range of political stances that emphasize the idea of "the people" and often juxtapose this group against " the elite". It is frequently associated with anti-establishment and anti-political sentiment. The term developed ...
that has dominated Dutch politics in the previous decade, "Henk" and "Ingrid" being the generic names proposed by
Geert Wilders and other
Party for Freedom
The Party for Freedom ( nl, Partij voor de Vrijheid, PVV) is a nationalist, right-wing populist political party in the Netherlands.
Founded in 2006 as the successor to Geert Wilders' one-man faction in the House of Representatives, it won nine ...
politicians to represent the average Dutch couple, by engaging everyday people in conversation. The book was panned in ''
de Volkskrant
''de Volkskrant'' (; ''The People's Paper'') is a Dutch daily morning newspaper. Founded in 1919, it has a nationwide circulation of about 250,000.
Formerly a leading centre-left Catholic broadsheet, ''de Volkskrant'' today is a medium-sized c ...
'' as a "cheap PR-stunt without any value to it."
During a debate with
Mark Rutte in 2010, Pechtold championed the cause of
social liberalism
Social liberalism (german: Sozialliberalismus, es, socioliberalismo, nl, Sociaalliberalisme), also known as new liberalism in the United Kingdom, modern liberalism, or simply liberalism in the contemporary United States, left-liberalism ...
, noting that the government “needs to offer services where fairness is more important than efficiency, such as education and healthcare," while accusing Rutte of pursuing policies that hurt the most vulnerable in Dutch society.
After the shootdown of
Malaysia Airlines Flight 17
Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 (MH17/MAS17) was a scheduled passenger flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur that was shot down by Russian forces on 17 July 2014, while flying over eastern Ukraine. All 283 passengers and 15 crew were killed. Cont ...
in July 2014, Pechtold explicitly voiced his support for economic expediency over ethical correctness by stating: "We are a small country, dependent on our exports, and unlike the United States, we cannot always react from our moral high grounds."
In December 2017, it was revealed that Pechtold received an apartment valued at 135,000 euros from Serge Marcoux, a former Canadian ambassador, that was not listed on the gift register of the House of Representatives, with Pechtold justifying the lack of report by saying that he knew Marcoux from outside politics and that the apartment was a private gift which did not fall under the purview of the register.
On October 6, 2018, Pechtold announced his resignation as D66 leader and from the parliament. As chairman of the parliamentary party, Pechtold was succeeded by
Rob Jetten
Rob Arnoldus Adrianus Jetten (; born 25 March 1987) is a Dutch politician of Democrats 66 (D66). He served as the party's parliamentary leader in the House of Representatives.
Early life and education
Jetten grew up in Uden, Noord-Brabant and ...
on 9 October.
Post-politics
Pechtold retired from active politics at just 52 and became active in the
public sector
The public sector, also called the state sector, is the part of the economy composed of both public services and public enterprises. Public sectors include the public goods and governmental services such as the military, law enforcement, infra ...
as a non-profit director and serves on several
state commissions and councils on behalf of the government. In October 2019 Pechtold was appointed as Director-General of the (CBR).
References
External links
;Official
*
Drs. A. (Alexander) PechtoldParlement & Politiek
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pechtold, Alexander
1965 births
Living people
Aldermen of Leiden
Chairmen of the Democrats 66
Democrats 66 politicians
Dutch auctioneers
Dutch agnostics
Art collectors from The Hague
Dutch art historians
Leaders of the Democrats 66
Leiden University alumni
Mayors of Wageningen
Members of the House of Representatives (Netherlands)
Ministers of Kingdom Relations of the Netherlands
Ministers without portfolio of the Netherlands
Municipal councillors of Leiden
People from Albrandswaard
People from Delft
People from Wageningen
Scholars of Dutch art
Scholars of Netherlandish art
20th-century Dutch historians
20th-century Dutch politicians
21st-century Dutch civil servants
21st-century Dutch historians
21st-century Dutch politicians