Alexander Pechtold | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Pechtold in 2013 | |
| Leader of theDemocrats 66 in the House of Representatives | |
| In office 30 November 2006 – 10 October 2018 | |
| Preceded by | Lousewies van der Laan |
| Succeeded by | Rob Jetten |
| Member of theHouse of Representatives | |
| In office 30 November 2006 – 10 October 2018 | |
| Leader of the Democrats 66 | |
| In office 24 June 2006 – 6 October 2018 | |
| Preceded by | Boris Dittrich |
| Succeeded by | Sigrid Kaag (2020) |
| Minister for the Interior | |
| In office 31 March 2005 – 3 July 2006 | |
| Prime Minister | Jan Peter Balkenende |
| Preceded by | Thom de Graaf |
| Succeeded by | Atzo Nicolaï |
| Mayor ofWageningen | |
| In office 1 October 2003 – 31 March 2005 | |
| Preceded by | Geke Faber |
| Succeeded by | Chris Rutten (ad Interim) |
| Chair of the Democrats 66 | |
| In office 16 November 2002 – 31 March 2005 | |
| Leader | Thom de Graaf (2002–2003) Boris Dittrich (2003–2005) |
| Preceded by | Gerard Schouw |
| Succeeded by | Jan Hoekema (ad Interim) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Alexander Pechtold (1965-12-16)16 December 1965 (age 59) Delft, Netherlands |
| Political party | Democrats 66 (since 1989) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | One son, one daughter |
| Residence(s) | Scheveningen, The Hague, Netherlands |
| Alma mater | Leiden University (BA,MA) |
| Occupation | Politician ·Civil servant ·Auctioneer ·Art historian |
Alexander Pechtold (born 16 December 1965) is a Dutch politician and art historian. He is a member ofDemocrats 66.
Pechtold studiedArchaeology andHistory of Dutch Art atLeiden University, and obtained aMaster of Arts degree. Pechtold worked as an auctioneer inThe Hague from July 1992 until June 1996 and as anAlderman in Leiden from June 1996 until October 2003. Pechtold served asChairman of the Democrats 66 from 16 November 2002 until 31 March 2005. In September 2003, Pechtold was nominated as the next mayor ofWageningen taking office on 1 October 2003. Pechtold was appointed asMinister without Portfolio for the Interior in thesecond Balkenende cabinet following acabinet reshuffle, taking office on 31 March 2005. AfterParty LeaderBoris Dittrich announced he was stepping down, Pechtold announced his candidacy and waselected as his successor on 24 June 2006. The cabinet fell just a year later, and he resigned on 3 July 2006.
For the2006 general election, Pechtold served aslead candidate and was elected to theHouse of Representatives, becomingParliamentary leader on 30 November 2006. For the2010,2012 and2017 general elections, Pechtold served as lead candidate again, and following a successfulcabinet formation in 2017 with thePeople's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD), theChristian Democratic Appeal (CDA) and theChristian Union formed thethird Rutte cabinet, with Pechtold opting to remain as Parliamentary leader. In October 2018 Pechtold unexpectedly announced his retirement from national politics and stepped down as leader and Parliamentary leader on 10 October 2018.
Alexander Pechtold was born on 16 December 1965 inDelft in theDutch province ofSouth Holland. Pechtold and his elder brother Roland Pechtold grew up in the village ofRhoon. He went to aLyceum inRotterdam. Pechtold studiedart history andarchaeology with a specialization in17th-century painting atLeiden University, obtaining aBachelor of Arts and aMaster of Arts degree in 1996. During that time Pechtold obtained certification as anauctioneer, and worked for theVan Stockum's Veilingen during his studies.
Pechtold became a member of theDemocrats 66 (D66) party in 1989. He was elected as aMunicipal councillor inLeiden in 1994, and became analderman in 1996. On 16 November 2002 he was elected asChairman of the D66. Pechtold was tasked with reforming the party after its disastrous results in the2002 general election, and preparing for the upcoming2003 general election.
On 1 October 2003, Pechtold was appointed mayor ofWageningen; he remained chairman of the D66.
Thom de Graaf, the D66Deputy Prime Minister andMinister for Government Reform and Kingdom Relations in theSecond Balkenende cabinet, resigned on 23 March 2005 after the introduction of democratically elected mayors had been rejected in theSenate. The proposal was especially important; it had become a symbol of the government reform that the D66 had wanted since the party's creation. Pechtold was asked to succeed him as Minister. Pechtold resigned as chairman and mayor the same day that he took office as the new Minister for Government Reform and Kingdom Relations, on 31 March 2005.
On 29 June 2006 the D66 retracted its support for the Second Balkenende cabinet. The next day,Prime MinisterJan Peter Balkenende offered the resignation of the full cabinet toQueen Beatrix. Pechtold resigned as Minister for Government Reform and Kingdom Relations on 3 July 2006. His fellow D66 cabinet memberLaurens Jan Brinkhorst, the Deputy Prime Minister andMinister of Economic Affairs, resigned on 7 July 2006.
Pechtold was elected the Leader of the D66 on 24 June 2006 in theleadership election of 2006, defeatingLousewies van der Laan, the party'sParliamentary leader in theHouse of Representatives. Van der Laan had only a few months earlier succeededBoris Dittrich, who had resigned as party leader and parliamentary leader in the House of Representatives on 3 February 2006.
In 2007 the parliamentarian press chose Pechtold with 31% of the votes as the "Dutch politician of the year 2007".
For the2006 general election Pechtold becamelead candidate and theDemocrats 66 lost three seats and became an opposition party. For the2010 general election, Pechtold again as lead candidate won ten seats but theDemocrats 66 remained an opposition party. With the following2012 general election, Pechtold again as lead candidate won two seats with theDemocrats 66 again remaining an opposition party.
During thefourth Balkenende cabinet administration Pechtold served as government opposition leader. After the2010 general election, the D66 won seven seats in theHouse of Representatives which journalists claimed was due to Pechtold's leadership during thefourth Balkenende cabinet time.[1] After the2010 Dutch cabinet formation, D66 again remained in opposition. In 2012, Pechtold publishedHenk, Ingrid, & Alexander, which ostensibly aimed to break through the populism that had dominated Dutch politics in the previous decade, "Henk" and "Ingrid" being the generic names proposed byGeert Wilders and otherParty for Freedom politicians to represent the average Dutch couple, by engaging everyday people in conversation. The book was panned inde Volkskrant as a "cheap PR-stunt without any value to it."[2]
During a debate withMark Rutte in 2010, Pechtold championed the cause ofsocial liberalism, noting that the government "needs to offer services where fairness is more important than efficiency, such as education and healthcare," while accusing Rutte of pursuing policies that hurt the most vulnerable in Dutch society.[3]
After the shootdown ofMalaysia Airlines Flight 17 in July 2014, Pechtold explicitly voiced his support for economic expediency over ethical correctness by stating: "We are a small country, dependent on our exports, and unlike the United States, we cannot always react from our moral high grounds."[4]
In December 2017, it was revealed that Pechtold received an apartment valued at 135,000 euros from Serge Marcoux, a former Canadian ambassador, that was not listed on the gift register of the House of Representatives, with Pechtold justifying the lack of report by saying that he knew Marcoux from outside politics and that the apartment was a private gift which did not fall under the purview of the register.[5]
On 6 October 2018, Pechtold announced his resignation as D66 leader and from the parliament.[6] As chairman of the parliamentary party, Pechtold was succeeded byRob Jetten on 9 October.[7]
Pechtold retired from active politics at 52 and became active in thepublic sector as a non-profit director and serves on several state commissions and councils on behalf of the government. In October 2019 Pechtold was appointed as Director-General of theCentral Bureau of Driving Licenses [nl] (CBR).[8][9] From 23 March 2021, Pechtold presents the TV programDe Achterkant van het Gelijk for broadcasterBNNVARA onNPO 2.[10] Since 22 April 2021, Pechtold has been the chairman of the Supervisory Board of the Dutch Lottery.[11]On 5 June 2025, Pechtold was nominated as mayor of his hometown ofDelft.[12]
Pechtold is divorced and has two children.[13]
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| Year | Body | Party | Pos. | Votes | Result | Ref. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party seats | Individual | |||||||
| 2006 | House of Representatives | Democrats 66 | 1 | 95,937 | 3 | Won | [14] | |
| 2010 | House of Representatives | Democrats 66 | 1 | 507,187 | 10 | Won | [15] | |
| 2012 | House of Representatives | Democrats 66 | 1 | 586,454 | 12 | Won | [16] | |
| 2017 | House of Representatives | Democrats 66 | 1 | 863,887 | 19 | Won | [17] | |
| 2023 | House of Representatives | Democrats 66 | 78[a] | 1,196 | 9 | Lost | [18] | |
Pechtold kijkt koddig in de lens van de NOS en noemt de populistische titel van zijn boek 'gewoon een knipoog'. Ik vind het een goedkope PR-stunt zonder onderliggende waarde.
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Chair of the Democrats 66 2002–2005 | Succeeded by Jan Hoekema Ad interim |
| Preceded by | Leader of the Democrats 66 2006–2018 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Lead candidate of the Democrats 66 2006,2010,2012,2017 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Parliamentary leader of the Democrats 66 in the House of Representatives 2006–2018 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Mayor ofWageningen 2003–2005 | Succeeded by Chris Rutten Ad interim |
| Preceded by | Minister for the Interior 2005–2006 | Succeeded by |
| Civic offices | ||
| Preceded by Petra Delsing | Director-General of the Centraal Bureau Rijvaardigheidsbewijzen 2019–present | Incumbent |
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| Health | ||
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| International | |
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| National | |
