Jan Franssen (born 11 June 1951 in Hilversum) is a Dutch politician. Franssen is a member of the

VVD The People's Party for Freedom and Democracy ( nl, Volkspartij voor Vrijheid en Democratie ; VVD) is a Conservative liberalism, conservative-liberalRudy Andeweg, Andeweg, R. and G. Irwin ''Politics and Governance in the Netherlands'', Basingsto ...

. He began his political career as an advisor to

Hans Wiegel Hans Wiegel (; born 16 July 1941) is a retired Dutch politician of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) and businessperson. Wiegel studied Law at the University of Amsterdam before switching to Political science obtaining a Bache ...

, having previously worked as a history teacher. Franssen was also a city councillor of

Nederhorst den Berg Nederhorst den Berg () is a village in the province of North Holland, Netherlands. It lies about 8 km northwest of Hilversum in the Vechtstreek area, near the Vecht river. Until 1 January 2002, it was a separate municipality; it is now part ...

, leader of the provincial parliament of North Holland and a member of the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entitles. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often c ...

(1982–1994). From 1994 to 2000 Franssen was

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

Zwolle Zwolle () is a city and municipality in the Northeastern Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of Overijssel and the province's second-largest municipality after Enschede with a population of 130,592 as of 1 December 2021. Zwolle is on ...

. Finally. he was named King's Commissioner in South Holland in 2000. He resigned on December 31, 2013. He was made member of the

Council of State of the Netherlands The Council of State ( nl, ) is a constitutionally established advisory body in the Netherlands to the government and States General that officially consists of members of the royal family and Crown-appointed members generally having political ...

the next day. He is the current chairman of the Interprovinciaal Overleg (

IPO An initial public offering (IPO) or stock launch is a public offering in which shares of a company are sold to institutional investors and usually also to retail (individual) investors. An IPO is typically underwritten by one or more investment ...

), that looks after provincial interests. Franssen 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 ...

. Jan Franssen is one of three openly gay politicians who served as King's Commissioner, the other two are: Clemens Cornielje, and

Arno Brok Arnoud Adrianus Maria "Arno" Brok (born 29 July 1968) is a Dutch politician serving as the King's Commissioner of Friesland since 2017.List of openly LGBT heads of government This is a list of openly lesbian, gay, bisexual, or trans (LGBT) people who have been the head of state or government of a country or a subnational division such as a state, a province, or a territory. Openly LGBT people have served as a national ...

List of the first LGBT holders of political offices This is a list of political offices which have been held by a lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender person, with details of the first such holder of each office. It should only list people who came out as LGBT before or during their terms in off ...

List of LGBT holders of political offices in the Netherlands LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) holders of political offices in the Netherlands. Cabinet Current * Kajsa Ollongren (D66) ** Deputy Prime Minister (2017-2022) ** Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations (2017-2022) ** Minister o ...

External links

Profile at Parlement.com

References

1951 births Living people Converts to Roman Catholicism from Calvinism Dutch educators Dutch Roman Catholics Dutch gay men Gay politicians King's and Queen's Commissioners of South Holland LGBT conservatism LGBT mayors of places in the Netherlands LGBT members of the Parliament of the Netherlands LGBT governors and heads of sub-national entities LGBT Roman Catholics Mayors of Zwolle Members of the Council of State (Netherlands) Members of the House of Representatives (Netherlands) Members of the Provincial Council of North Holland Municipal councillors in North Holland People from Hilversum People's Party for Freedom and Democracy politicians Knights of the Holy Sepulchre {{Netherlands-VVD-politician-stub