Norwegian
Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to:
*Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe
* Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway
* Demographics of Norway
*The Norwegian language, including ...
Buskerud
Buskerud () is a former county and a current electoral district in Norway, bordering Akershus, Oslo, Oppland, Sogn og Fjordane, Hordaland, Telemark and Vestfold. The region extends from the Oslofjord and Drammensfjorden in the southeast to Ha ...
. He is the son of railroad worker Kjell O. J. Kolberg (1921-) and homemaker Ruth Utengen (1921-2006). After finishing primary school, Kolberg attended Oslo Technical College, but later dropped out. He since completed training as an
electrician
An electrician is a tradesperson specializing in electrical wiring of buildings, transmission lines, stationary machines, and related equipment. Electricians may be employed in the installation of new electrical components or the maintenance ...
. He held a variety of jobs, including mailman, Lab assistant at a cable wire factory and also as assistant at the local shoe-factory.
Political career
Kolberg served as a deputy representative in the
Norwegian Parliament
The Storting ( no, Stortinget ) (lit. the Great Thing) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years bas ...
from 1977 to 1981. He served as a deputy representative for the second time from 2001 to 2005, and met regularly from 1 October to 19 October 2001 while
Thorbjørn Jagland
Thorbjørn Jagland (born Thorbjørn Johansen; , 5 November 1950) is a Norwegian politician from the Labour Party. He served as the secretary general of the Council of Europe from 2009 to 2019. He served as the 32nd prime minister of Norway from ...
was
Minister of Foreign Affairs
A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between co ...
third cabinet Brundtland
Brundtland's Third Cabinet was a minority, Labour Government of Norway. It succeeded the H- Sp- KrF Cabinet Syse, and sat between 3 November 1990 and 25 October 1996.cabinet Jagland was announced, it became clear that the new prime minister, Thorbjørn Jagland, who was also Kolberg's childhood friend, had discarded him as state secretary. Kolberg reacted with anger and frustration, and the media portrayed the matter as Jagland firing his best friend. Jagland stated that "Martin had wanted to work for Gro arlem Brundtland... I really wanted him to work as party secretary". To Kolberg's reaction, Jagland stated: "I followed an agreement between us, and I thought he did not want the job. I am very surprised by his reaction". Jagland further stated that it was all a misunderstanding, because he Jagland thought that Kolberg did not want to work with "the Norwegian House". Five days later, Kolberg was appointed state secretary in the Ministry of Defence, where he remained until the cabined withdrew on 17 October 1997, following the defeat in the 1997 election.
From 2002 to 2009, he served as the party secretary of the Labour Party, when he stepped down in order to stand in the 2009 election. He was succeeded by
Raymond Johansen
Raymond Johansen (born 14 February 1961) is a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party who has been Governing Mayor of Oslo since 2015. A former member of the Socialist Left Party, Johansen previously served as the Oslo city commissioner for t ...
. Several others were seen as candidates for the post, including
Trond Giske
Trond Giske (born 7 November 1966) is a Norwegian former politician who served as deputy leader of the Labour Party from 2015 until his resignation in 2018 as a result of the so-called Giske affair. He announced his permanent withdrawal from po ...