Renske Maria Leijten (born 17 March 1979) is a Dutch politician of the

Socialist Party Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...

. She has been a member of the House of Representatives since 2006. She focuses on matters of

public health Public health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals". Analyzing the det ...

quality of life Quality of life (QOL) is defined by the World Health Organization as "an individual's perception of their position in life in the context of the culture and value systems in which they live and in relation to their goals, expectations, standards ...

and

sports Sport pertains to any form of competitive physical activity or game that aims to use, maintain, or improve physical ability and skills while providing enjoyment to participants and, in some cases, entertainment to spectators. Sports can, th ...

. From 6 February 2014 until 29 May 2014 she was temporarily absent due to maternity leave, she was first replaced by

Tjitske Siderius Tjitske Siderius (born 24 September 1981, in Groenlo) is a Dutch politician. She was a member of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands for the Socialist Party between 3 September 2013 and 26 November 2013, temporarily replacing Sadet Ka ...

, and since 14 May 2014 by Henri Swinkels. Since 2005 she has been a member of SP's party executive committee. From 2005 to 2007 she was also chairwoman of SP's youth organization

ROOD A rood or rood cross, sometimes known as a triumphal cross, is a cross or crucifix, especially the large crucifix set above the entrance to the chancel of a medieval church. Alternatively, it is a large sculpture or painting of the crucifixion ...

. Leijten studied

Dutch language Dutch ( ) is a West Germanic language spoken by about 25 million people as a first language and 5 million as a second language. It is the third most widely spoken Germanic language The Germanic languages are a branch of the Indo-Europea ...

and

literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to include ...

at the

University of Groningen The University of Groningen (abbreviated as UG; nl, Rijksuniversiteit Groningen, abbreviated as RUG) is a Public university#Continental Europe, public research university of more than 30,000 students in the city of Groningen (city), Groningen in ...

. She was raised

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

but is now

agnostic Agnosticism is the view or belief that the existence of God, of the divine or the supernatural is unknown or unknowable. (page 56 in 1967 edition) Another definition provided is the view that "human reason is incapable of providing sufficient ...

.Perdefinitie.nl biography
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References

*
Parlement.com biography

External links

*
House of Representatives biography
1979 births Living people 21st-century Dutch politicians 21st-century Dutch women politicians Dutch anti-poverty advocates Dutch agnostics Dutch feminists Former Roman Catholics Members of the House of Representatives (Netherlands) People from Leiden Dutch socialist feminists Socialist Party (Netherlands) politicians University of Groningen alumni 20th-century Dutch women {{Netherlands-politician-stub