Patrick Jules Maria Vankrunkelsven (born 2 May 1957), is a Belgian

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

, professor of

medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pr ...

and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

. He obtained an MD and PhD from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven ( Leuven,

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

Political career

He was president of the

Volksunie People's Union ( nl, Volksunie, VU) was a Flemish nationalist political party in Belgium, formed in 1954 as a successor to the Christian Flemish People's Union. The Volksunie defined itself as a big tent and catch-all party that combined suppor ...

from 1998 until 2000, succeeding Bert Anciaux. When that party was dissolved in 2001, he initially chose the left-liberal

SPIRIT Spirit or spirits may refer to: Liquor and other volatile liquids * Spirits, a.k.a. liquor, distilled alcoholic drinks * Spirit or tincture, an extract of plant or animal material dissolved in ethanol * Volatile (especially flammable) liquids, ...

, but eventually went to the VLD where he was senator from 2007 until 2011. He was part of the party's left wing. Patrik Vankrunkelsven has been mayor of

Laakdal Laakdal () is a municipality located in the Belgian province of Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With ...

from 1994 to 2006.

Notes

Flemish activists Open Vlaamse Liberalen en Democraten politicians Members of the Belgian Federal Parliament KU Leuven alumni Living people 1957 births People's Union (Belgium) politicians People from Geel {{Belgium-mayor-stub