Hugo de Jonge
Hugo Mattheüs de Jonge (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈɦyɣoː mɑˈteːjʏz də ˈjɔŋə]; born 26 September 1977) is a Dutch politician who has served as King's Commissioner of Zeeland since 1 July 2025, after an acting period from 16 September 2024. A member of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), he was elected to its leadership in 2020 for the 2021 general election. He withdrew later that year, citing the impossibility of combining his position as Health Minister in charge of the COVID-19 pandemic efforts with his party leadership. He later served in the fourth Rutte cabinet as Minister for Housing and Spatial Planning from 2022 until 2024 and Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations from 2023 until 2024.
Hugo de Jonge | |
|---|---|
 De Jonge in 2023 | |
| King's Commissioner of Zeeland | |
| Assumed office 16 September 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Han Polman |
| Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations | |
| In office 5 September 2023 – 2 July 2024 | |
| Prime Minister | Mark Rutte |
| Preceded by | Hanke Bruins Slot |
| Succeeded by | Judith Uitermark |
| Minister for Housing and Spatial Planning | |
| In office 10 January 2022 – 2 July 2024 | |
| Prime Minister | Mark Rutte |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Mona Keijzer |
| Leader of the Christian Democratic Appeal | |
| In office 15 July 2020 – 10 December 2020 | |
| Preceded by | Sybrand van Haersma Buma |
| Succeeded by | Wopke Hoekstra |
| Deputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands | |
| In office 26 October 2017 – 10 January 2022 | |
| Prime Minister | Mark Rutte |
| Preceded by | Lodewijk Asscher |
| Succeeded by | Sigrid Kaag |
| Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport | |
| In office 26 October 2017 – 10 January 2022 | |
| Prime Minister | Mark Rutte |
| Preceded by | Edith Schippers |
| Succeeded by | Ernst Kuipers |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Hugo Mattheüs de Jonge 26 September 1977 |
| Party | Christian Democratic Appeal |
| Occupation | |
Hugo Mattheüs de Jonge (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈɦyɣoː mɑˈteːjʏz də ˈjɔŋə]; born 26 September 1977) is a Dutch politician who has served as King's Commissioner of Zeeland since 1 July 2025, after an acting period from 16 September 2024. A member of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), he was elected to its leadership in 2020 for the 2021 general election. He withdrew later that year, citing the impossibility of combining his position as Health Minister in charge of the COVID-19 pandemic efforts with his party leadership.[1] He later served in the fourth Rutte cabinet as Minister for Housing and Spatial Planning from 2022 until 2024 and Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations from 2023 until 2024.
Early life and career
[edit]De Jonge studied at the Ichthus Hogeschool in Rotterdam to become a teacher in primary education and then continued in Zwolle a study for school management, which he completed with a diploma "school leader primary education."
He worked in education for five years, first as a schoolteacher and eventually as a primary school deputy director.[2]
De Jonge moved to national policy by working as a policy assistant for the CDA group in the House of Representatives in 2004. Between 2006 and 2010, he worked at the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science as political assistant to CDA Minister Maria van der Hoeven and State Secretary Marja van Bijsterveldt and as a policy assistant focusing on quality improvement of secondary education.[3]
Political career
[edit]Alderman
[edit]In 2010, De Jonge was appointed as an alderman in the Rotterdam municipal executive, tasked with the Education, Youth and Family portfolio. As such, he argued in 2013 on national television for the closing of the Islamic school association Ibn Ghaldoun after several problems came to light.[4][5]
Following the 2014 municipal election, De Jonge was again appointed an alderman, with the Healthcare portfolio. The same year, he was announced as the "Politician of the Year" in Rotterdam.[6] In October 2016, he announced a programme to persuade parents who are considered vulnerable to consider voluntary birth control.[7] As he left the Rotterdam politics in October 2017, he was awarded the municipal Wolfert van Borselenpenning.[8]
Minister
[edit]In October 2017, De Jonge was appointed Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport in the Third Rutte cabinet.[9] During the administration of the oath and installation of the new Ministers, De Jonge received media attention because of his unusual choice of shoes, receiving both criticism and praise.[10][8]
After the resignation of Bruno Bruins as Minister for Medical Care on 19 March 2020, De Jonge became responsible for the government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic.[11] In this capacity, he initiated the development of a COVID-19 app.[2]
On 18 June 2020, De Jonge announced his candidacy for the leadership of the Christian Democratic Appeal, which had been vacant since the resignation of Sybrand van Haersma Buma in May 2019.[12] He won the vote against Pieter Omtzigt. As Minister for Housing and Spatial Planning, De Jonge introduced the Good Landlordship Act to regulate rented housing, and it passed both houses of parliament in March 2023.[13][14] He proposed an amendment the following year to extend rent control beyond public housing, and he filed a bill that would mandate a certain percentage of new housing to be affordable.[15][16] It went into effect in July 2024.[17] The fourth Rutte cabinet had been a caretaker government since July 2023. However, De Jonge continued introducing new legislative proposals as no housing-related subjects had been exempted from consideration by the House of Representatives.[18]
His term as minister ended on 2 July 2024, when the Schoof cabinet was sworn in, and he became King's Commissioner of Zeeland in an acting capacity on 16 September 2024, succeeding Han Polman.[19][20] He was appointed to the office and his acting period ended on 1 July 2025.
Political positions
[edit]In his candidacy for the CDA leadership, De Jonge expressed his commitment to the political centre, seeing the CDA as a "broad people's party." He is seen as less right-wing on economic issues than his predecessors, having previously called for the market and competition in healthcare to be restrained.[2][21] He also believes his party should not cooperate with the right-wing populist parties, Party for Freedom and Forum for Democracy.[22]
Personal life
[edit]De Jonge has a wife called Mirelle, and they have children.[23]
References
[edit]- ^ "Hugo de Jonge stopt als lijsttrekker van het CDA, te druk met coronacrisis". nos.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 18 December 2020.
- ^ a b c "Hugo de Jonge: van onderwijzer tot mogelijke CDA-leider". NOS (in Dutch). 18 June 2020. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ "Hugo de Jonge nieuwe minister op VWS" (in Dutch). Retrieved 7 November 2017.
- ^ "'Sluiting Ibn Ghaldoun onvermijdelijk' – Binnenland – PAROOL". Het Parool (in Dutch). 12 June 2013. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
- ^ "Ook PvdA wil Ibn Ghaldoun sluiten". RTL Nieuws. Archived from the original on 18 October 2017. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
- ^ "Cookies op AD.nl | AD.nl". www.ad.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 7 November 2017.
- ^ Graaf, Peter de (October 2016). "'Verplicht kwetsbare ouder tot tijdelijke anticonceptie' – Binnenland – Voor nieuws, achtergronden en columns". De Volkskrant (in Dutch). Retrieved 7 November 2017.
- ^ a b "Hoogste onderscheiding én schoenen voor De Jonge bij afscheid" (in Dutch). Retrieved 7 November 2017.
- ^ "Het is officieel: dit worden de nieuwe ministers en staatssecretarissen van Rutte III". RTL Nieuws. Archived from the original on 22 October 2017. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
- ^ "Ophef over Portugese schoenen van vicepremier De Jonge: 'Niet gepast'". RTL Nieuws. Archived from the original on 7 November 2017. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
- ^ "PvdA'er Martin van Rijn volgt Bruins tijdelijk op als minister voor Medische Zorg". RTL Nieuws (in Dutch). 20 March 2020. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ "Hugo de Jonge wil lijsttrekker van het CDA worden". NOS (in Dutch). 18 June 2020. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ "Wet goed verhuurderschap" [Good Landlordship Act]. House of Representatives (in Dutch). Retrieved 6 February 2024.
- ^ "Wet goed verhuurderschap" [Good Landlordship Act]. Senate (in Dutch). Retrieved 6 February 2024.
- ^ "Minister dient huurwet in, steun in Tweede Kamer onzeker" [Minister files new rental bill, unsure of support in the House of Representatives]. NOS (in Dutch). 6 February 2024. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
- ^ Wolzak, Marine (7 March 2024). "Minister De Jonge wil snel 'betaalbaar' bouwen kunnen afdwingen" [Minister De Jonge quickly wants to be able to mandate the construction of 'affordable' housing]. Het Financieele Dagblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 10 March 2024.
- ^ Van Eijsden, Auke (25 June 2024). "In de laatste week van Rutte IV stemt ook de senaat vóór de omstreden huurwet van minister De Jonge" [The Senate also votes in favor of controversial rent bill of Minister De Jonge in last week of Rutte IV]. Trouw (in Dutch). Retrieved 25 June 2024.
- ^ König, Eppo; Pelgrim, Christiaan (17 March 2024). "Demissionair? Rutte IV regeert nog volop door" [Demissionary? Rutte IV continues to govern]. NRC (in Dutch). Retrieved 24 March 2024.
- ^ "Ministers en staatssecretarissen kabinet-Schoof beëdigd" [Ministers and state secretaries of Schoof cabinet sworn in]. NOS (in Dutch). 2 July 2024. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
- ^ Wisse, Joeri (28 August 2024). "Hugo de Jonge tijdelijk vervanger van Polman: 'Ik ga met hart en ziel aan de slag voor Zeeland en de Zeeuwen'" [Huge de Jonge temporary replacement of Polman: 'I will work for Zeeland and its inhabitants with my heart and soul']. Provinciaal Zeeuwse Courant (in Dutch). Retrieved 28 November 2024.
- ^ "Minister De Jonge: 'Marktwerking in de zorg is doorgeslagen'". RTL Nieuws (in Dutch). 1 March 2019. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ "Hugo de Jonge: CDA moet niet met FvD in zee". AD.nl (in Dutch). 30 August 2019. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
- ^ De Jonge, Hugo (28 June 2024). "Minister De Jonge neemt na zeven jaar afscheid. 'Ik voel een onweerstaanbare aantrekkingskracht van complexe klussen'" [Minister De Jonge departs after seven years. 'I cannot resist complex tasks']. Trouw (Interview) (in Dutch). Interviewed by Auke van Eijsden. Retrieved 29 June 2024.
External links
[edit]
- Official website
- CDA biography (in Dutch)
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