Jørgen Sønstebø (13 February 1922 – 29 June 2013) was a Norwegian bailiff and politician for the Christian Democratic Party. He was born in Bø as a son of farmers. He took lower education, then officer's training from 1939 to the German invasion of Norway in 1940. During the war he took middle school as a private candidate in 1941, while working as a farm and forest labourer, later police training. He was decorated with the Defence Medal 1940–1945. He was a police officer in

Hjartdal Hjartdal is a municipality in Telemark in the county of Vestfold og Telemark in Norway. It is part of the traditional regions of Upper Telemark and Øst-Telemark. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Sauland. The munic ...

1945 to 1952, Kviteseid 1952 to 1958, and Gjerpen/ Siljan from 1958 to 1964. After a period as acting bailiff in Gransherad 1964 to 1965 he returned to Kviteseid. He served as bailiff here from 1971 to 1989. He settled in Bø where he took over the family farm Nyhus in 1973. From 1989 to 2005 he was a self-made auctioneer. On the local level he was a member of the municipal councils of Gjerpen from 1959 to 1963, Skien from 1963 to 1965 and Kviteseid from 1967 to 1979 and 1987 to 1995. From 1963 to 1965 he was a member of Telemark county council. He chaired the county party chapter from 1966 to 1970, and the local party chapter on multiple occasions. He was elected to the

Parliament of Norway 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 Telemark in

1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: Citing progress in peace negotiations, U.S. ...

, and was re-elected on two occasions in

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...

and

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...

. He served as the party whip during his first term. He was a member of the

Standing Committee on Justice The Standing Committee on Justice ( no, Justiskomiteen) is a standing committee of the Parliament of Norway. It is responsible for policies relating to judicial system, the probation service, the police, persons performing civilian national service ...

for all his three terms, advancing to deputy chair during his last term. He was also a member of the

Preparatory Credentials Committee The Preparatory Credentials Committee ( no, Stortingets fullmaktskomité) is a special committee of the Parliament of Norway that is responsible for approving the election of parliament. The 16 members of the committee are appointed to surveillance ...

for his two last terms and the Standing Committee on Scrutiny during his last term. He was decorated with the King's Medal of Merit in silver in 1989. Sønstebø also held various other posts. He was a board member of

Telemark Hospital Telemark Hospital Trust is a health trust with its headquarters in Skien. There are also sections in Porsgrunn and Kragerø. The total employees in 2003 were 2750, of which 215 were doctors. It is owned by Southern and Eastern Norway Regional Heal ...

from 1970 to 1983 and member of the corporate council of Norsk Hydro from 1986 to 1992. He also volunteered for his local Pentecostal congregation.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sonstebo, Jorgen 1922 births 2013 deaths People from Bø, Telemark People from Skien People from Kviteseid Politicians from Telemark Christian Democratic Party (Norway) politicians Members of the Storting Norwegian Pentecostals Recipients of the King's Medal of Merit in silver 20th-century Norwegian politicians Norwegian Army personnel of World War II