Leendert "Leen" Verbeek (born 5 March 1954) is a Dutch politician serving as the King's Commissioner of Flevoland since 2008. A member of the Labour Party (PvdA), he previously served as

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

Purmerend Purmerend () is a city and municipality in the west of the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland and in the region of West Friesland. The city is surrounded by polders, such as the Purmer, Beemster and the Wormer. The city became the tra ...

from 2003 to 2008. Verbeek spent his early years in

Eindhoven Eindhoven () is a city and municipality in the Netherlands, located in the southern province of North Brabant of which it is its largest. With a population of 238,326 on 1 January 2022,VMBO Pre-vocational secondary education (, abbr. VMBO) is a school track in the Netherlands. It lasts four years, from the age of twelve to sixteen. It combines vocational training with theoretical education in languages, mathematics, history, arts ...

) and a year of

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, he attended the Academy for Educational Labour in

Baarn Baarn () is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, near Hilversum in the province of Utrecht. The municipality of Baarn The municipality of Baarn consists of the following towns: Baarn, Eembrugge, Lage Vuursche. The town of Baarn Ba ...

. He then started to work as a youth worker 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 ...

. Ten years later Verbeek started his political career through political institutions, ending up 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 ...

Houten Houten () is a municipality in the Netherlands, in the province of Utrecht. Population centres The municipality consists of the following towns: * 't Goy * Houten * Schalkwijk * Tull en 't Waal Houten (town) The main town in the municipality is ...

(1989–96). He was appointed Mayor of

seven years after he left the political sphere. In between he was director of a self-created company. On 18 December 2007, it was announced that Verbeek was a candidate for Mayor of

Eindhoven Eindhoven () is a city and municipality in the Netherlands, located in the southern province of North Brabant of which it is its largest. With a population of 238,326 on 1 January 2022,Rob van Gijzel Rob van Gijzel (born 29 June 1954 in Eindhoven) is a Dutch politician. He is a former MP and was mayor of Eindhoven between 8 April 2008 and 13 September 2016. When Van Gijzel was a student, he became an active member of the Jonge Socialisten. ...

. A

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...

was held on 23 January 2008, in which Verbeek scored 33% of the votes, but because the required number of voters was not met, the referendum was nullified and the decision was made in-house, which resulted in Van Gijzel being appointed Mayor of Eindhoven.De heer Van Gijzel voorgedragen als burgemeester van Eindhoven
, Nederlands Genootschap van Burgemeesters, 25 January 2008. Verbeek was replaced by Fons Hertog as Mayor of Purmerend in November 2008, as Verbeek was appointed the Queen's Commissioner (in 2013 the title changed to King's Commissioner) for the province of Flevoland.

References

*
Parlement.com biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Verbeek, Leen 1954 births Living people Aldermen in Utrecht (province) Dutch civil servants Dutch social workers King's and Queen's Commissioners of Flevoland Labour Party (Netherlands) politicians Mayors in North Holland People from Eindhoven People from Houten People from Leiderdorp People from Purmerend