Heðin Mortensen (born April 7, 1946) is a Faroese politician and member of the

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties Form ...

. He was the mayor of the Municipality of Tórshavn, serving from January 1, 2021, and succeeded by Elsa Berg in 2024. He was also mayor from January 1, 2005, to December 31, 2016. Mortensen was born in

Trongisvágur Trongisvágur () is a village on the island of Suduroy in the Faroe Islands. Trongisvágur is the village in the bottom of Trongisvágsfjørður ( fjord) on the east coast of Suduroy. Trongisvágur and the neighbouring villages of Tvøroyri an ...

. He worked as a mechanic from 1961 to 1978, when he became an insurance agent for

The Faroe Insurance Company The Faroe Insurance Company (, TF), often referred to as Tryggingin, is an insurance company in the Faroe Islands. The company currently employs about 110 people and is headquartered in Tórshavn. The Faroe Insurance Company also has branch offices ...

(). He headed the Tórshavn Rowing Club from 1973 to 1979, the Tórshavn Athletics Association () from 1975 to 1978, and the Faroese Athletics Association () from 1980 to 2000. He was also the chair of the Tórshavn Theater Society from 1996 to 2003. He has been a supervisory board member of the power company SEV since 1973 and was its director from 1993 to 1997. In politics, Mortensen became a member of the Tórshavn municipal council in 1973. He served as deputy mayor from 2001 to 2005 before becoming mayor. He was a member of the Union Party from 1988 to 2004. As a member of the Union Party, Mortensen was also active in politics at the national level. He intermittently participated in the

Faroese Parliament Faroese ( ) or Faroish ( ) may refer to anything pertaining to the Faroe Islands, e.g.: * the Faroese language * the Faroese people * the Faroese islands {{Disambiguation Language and nationality disambiguation pages ...

as a deputy representative from 1989 to 1991 and in 1993. He later served in the Faroese Parliament as a representative from the South

Streymoy Streymoy (, ) is the largest and most populated island of the Faroe Islands. The capital, Tórshavn, is located on its southeast coast. The name means "island of currents". It also refers to the largest region of the country that also includes the ...

() district from 1998 to 2004. He became a deputy representative again in 2008, but this time for the Social Democratic Party. In 2015 he was elected to the Faroese Parliament as a member of the Social Democratic Party. Mortensen has received numerous Nordic honors for his involvement in sports. He was named a knight of the

Order of the Dannebrog The Order of the Dannebrog () is a Denmark, Danish order of chivalry instituted in 1671 by Christian V of Denmark, Christian V. Until 1808, membership in the Order was limited to fifty members of noble or royal rank, who formed a single cla ...

in 1991, and a knight 1st class of the same order in 2003. Mortensen is a supporter of

whaling in the Faroe Islands Whaling in the Faroe Islands, or (from the Faroese terms , meaning pilot whale, and , meaning killing), is a type of drive hunting that involves herding various species of whales and dolphins, but primarily pilot whales, into shallow bays ...

.Joensen, Jóan Pauli. 2009. ''Pilot Whaling in the Faroe Islands: History, Ethnography, Symbol''. Tórshavn: Fróðskapur / Faroe University Press, p. 14.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mortensen, Hedin Living people 1946 births Mayors of Tórshavn Members of the Løgting People from Trongisvágur