Pieter Jan Marie Litjens (born 17 May 1968) is a Dutch politician of the

People's Party for Freedom and Democracy The People's Party for Freedom and Democracy ( nl, Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie ; VVD) is a conservative-liberal Andeweg, R. and G. Irwin ''Politics and Governance in the Netherlands'', Basingstoke (Palgrave) p.49 political party in ...

(VVD). He is 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 ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

since 18 June 2014. Litjens previously served as an

for the Amsterdam borough Zuidoost from April 2002 until August 2006. He was selected as the Mayor of Aalsmeer serving from 15 August 2007 until 20 September 2012 when he was elected as a Member of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands after the Dutch general election of 2012. After the Dutch municipal elections of 2014 he became an

on 18 June 2014.

Biography

Early life

Pieter Jan Marie Litjens was born on 17 May 1968 in

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city and a List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, pro ...

in the

Netherlands Province There are twelve provinces of the Netherlands (), representing the administrative layer between the national government and the local municipalities, with responsibility for matters of subnational or regional importance. The most populous prov ...

. He studied

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

at the

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam The Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (abbreviated as ''VU Amsterdam'' or simply ''VU'' when in context) is a public research university in Amsterdam, Netherlands, being founded in 1880. The VU Amsterdam is one of two large, publicly funded research ...

from 1988 to 1991, when he changed majors to

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

at the

University of Amsterdam The University of Amsterdam (abbreviated as UvA, nl, Universiteit van Amsterdam) is a public research university located in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The UvA is one of two large, publicly funded research universities in the city, the other being ...

and graduated in 1996 with a

Master of Science A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...

degree. He worked for the

VNO-NCW VNO-NCW (known in English as the "Confederation of Netherlands Industry and Employers") is a Dutch employers' federation founded in 1996 as a merger of the Christian-democratic ''Nederlands Christelijk Werkgeversverbond'' (NCW), which was founded as ...

from 1996 to 1999 when he became the political advisor of the

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 ...

for Economic Affairs of

, serving until 2002.

Politics

In April 2002 he became an

for the

Amsterdam-Zuidoost Amsterdam-Zuidoost (; "Amsterdam-Southeast") is a borough (''stadsdeel'') of Amsterdam, Netherlands. It consists of four residential neighborhoods—Bijlmermeer, Venserpolder, Gaasperdam and Driemond—as well as the Amstel III/Bullewijk B ...

borough, dealing with finance, economic affairs, sports and recreation, environmental management and personnel and organization. He stepped down in 2006 and was elected mayor of Aalsmeer the following year, taking office on 15 August 2007. He was candidate for the House of Representatives during the Dutch general election of 2012. He was elected on 12 September 2012 and left mayoralty of Aalsmeer the same day he has taken office as an MP. Litjens became alderman in Amsterdam on 18 June 2014, he resigned in the House of Representatives on 25 June and was replaced by Hayke Veldman.

References

External links

;Official *
Drs. P.J.M. (Pieter) Litjens
Parlement & Politiek {{DEFAULTSORT:Litjens, Pieter 1968 births Living people Aldermen of Amsterdam Dutch political consultants Mayors in North Holland People from Aalsmeer Members of the House of Representatives (Netherlands) Politicians from Utrecht (city) People's Party for Freedom and Democracy politicians University of Amsterdam alumni 21st-century Dutch politicians