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 (1977-09-26)26 September 1977 (age 48) |
| Party | Christian Democratic Appeal |
| Residence | Rotterdam |
| Occupation | |
Hugo Mattheüs de Jonge (Dutch pronunciation:[ˈɦyɣoːmɑˈteːjʏzdəˈjɔŋə]; born 26 September 1977) is a Dutch politician who has served asKing's Commissioner of Zeeland since 1 July 2025, after an acting period from 16 September 2024. A member of theChristian Democratic Appeal (CDA), he was elected to itsleadership in 2020 for the2021 general election. He withdrew later that year, citing the impossibility of combining his position asHealth Minister in charge of theCOVID-19 pandemic efforts with his party leadership.[1] He later served in thefourth Rutte cabinet asMinister for Housing and Spatial Planning from 2022 until 2024 andMinister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations from 2023 until 2024.
De Jonge studied at theIchthus Hogeschool inRotterdam to become a teacher in primary education and then continued inZwolle 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 theHouse of Representatives in 2004. Between 2006 and 2010, he worked at theMinistry of Education, Culture and Science aspolitical assistant to CDA MinisterMaria van der Hoeven and State SecretaryMarja van Bijsterveldt and as a policy assistant focusing on quality improvement of secondary education.[3]
In 2010, De Jonge was appointed as analderman in the Rotterdammunicipal 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 the2014 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 municipalWolfert van Borselenpenning.[8]
In October 2017, De Jonge was appointedDeputy Prime Minister andMinister of Health, Welfare and Sport in theThird 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 ofBruno Bruins as Minister for Medical Care on 19 March 2020, De Jonge became responsible for the government's response to theCOVID-19 pandemic.[11] In this capacity, he initiated the development of aCOVID-19 app.[2]
On 18 June 2020, De Jonge announced his candidacy for theleadership of the Christian Democratic Appeal, which had been vacant since the resignation ofSybrand van Haersma Buma in May 2019.[12] He won the vote againstPieter Omtzigt. As Minister for Housing and Spatial Planning, De Jonge introduced theGood Landlordship Act to regulate rented housing, and it passed both houses of parliament in March 2023.[13][14] He proposed anamendment the following year to extendrent control beyondpublic 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 acaretaker 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 theSchoof cabinet was sworn in, and he becameKing's Commissioner of Zeeland in an acting capacity on 16 September 2024, succeedingHan Polman.[19][20] He was appointed to the office and his acting period ended on 1 July 2025.
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 andForum for Democracy.[22]
De Jonge has a wife called Mirelle, and they have children.[23]
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Deputy Prime Minister 2017–2022 Served alongside: Kajsa Ollongren(2017–2019; 2020–2022) Wouter Koolmees(2019–2020) Carola Schouten | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport 2017–2022 | Succeeded by |
| New office | Minister for Housing and Spatial Planning 2022–2024 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations 2023–2024 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | King's Commissioner ofZeeland 2024–present | Incumbent |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Leader of the Christian Democratic Appeal 2020 | Succeeded by |
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