Erling Lae (born 16 March 1947) is a

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 ...

politician for the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

. He was born in

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

, is a cand.philol. by education and formerly worked as a journalist. From 1981 to 1985 he was a political advisor in the Ministry of Consumer Affairs and Administration. He was elected to

city council in 1991, and was a city commissioner between 1997 and 2000. From 2000 to 2009 he was the governing mayor of Oslo. As such he headed the executive branch of the city government in the capital city of Norway. He was a deputy leader of the Conservative Party from 2008 to 2010. In 2010 he was announced as the new county governor of Vestfold, succeeding

Mona Røkke Mona Scobie Røkke (3 March 1940 – 13 July 2013) was a Norwegian and politician for the Conservative Party. She was the Minister of Justice from 1981 to 1985. Early life and career She was born in Drammen as a daughter of Randal William Scobi ...

. He was succeeded in June 2016 by second deputy leader of the Progress Party, Per Arne Olsen. Lae is openly

gay ''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'. While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...

, and was named as the most powerful homosexual man in Norway three years in a row by queer website Gaysir, in 2006 through 2008. He is married to Jens Torstein Olsen, a

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched ...

minister, with whom he had lived with for 26 years before

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...

was legalized in Norway in 2009. In June later that year, Lae and his husband travelled to

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urba ...

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

to protest after Vilnius Mayor condemned

gay pride parade A pride parade (also known as pride march, pride event, or pride festival) is an outdoor event celebrating lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) social and self-acceptance, achievements, legal rights, and pride. The events so ...

s in the city centre, along with the

government of Lithuania The Government of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Vyriausybė), officially the Government of the Republic of Lithuania (''Lietuvos Respublikos Vyriausybė'', abbreviated ''LRV''), is the cabinet of Lithuania, exercising executive power in the countr ...

passing a law banning "homosexual advertising".

References

1947 births Living people Norwegian journalists Conservative Party (Norway) politicians Politicians from Oslo County governors of Norway Gay politicians Norwegian LGBT politicians LGBT conservatism {{Norway-politician-1940s-stub