Frits Korthals Altes | |
|---|---|
 Korthals Altes in 2001 | |
| President of the Senate | |
| In office 11 March 1997 – 2 October 2001 | |
| Preceded by | Herman Tjeenk Willink |
| Succeeded by | Gerrit Braks |
| Parliamentary leader in theSenate | |
| In office 13 June 1995 – 11 March 1997 | |
| Preceded by | David Luteijn |
| Succeeded by | Leendert Ginjaar |
| Parliamentary group | People's Party for Freedom and Democracy |
| Member of the House of Representatives | |
| In office 14 September 1989 – 11 June 1991 | |
| Minister of the Interior | |
| In office 26 January 1987 – 3 February 1987 Ad interim | |
| Prime Minister | Ruud Lubbers |
| Preceded by | Kees van Dijk |
| Succeeded by | Jan de Koning (Ad interim) |
| In office 20 February 1986 – 12 March 1986 Ad interim | |
| Prime Minister | Ruud Lubbers |
| Preceded by | Koos Rietkerk |
| Succeeded by | Rudolf de Korte |
| Minister of Justice | |
| In office 4 November 1982 – 7 November 1989 | |
| Prime Minister | Ruud Lubbers |
| Preceded by | Job de Ruiter |
| Succeeded by | Ernst Hirsch Ballin |
| Member of the Senate | |
| In office 11 June 1991 – 2 October 2001 | |
| In office 10 June 1981 – 4 November 1982 | |
| Chairman of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy | |
| In office 15 March 1975 – 22 May 1981 | |
| Leader | Hans Wiegel |
| Preceded by | Haya van Someren |
| Succeeded by | Jan Kamminga |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Frederik Korthals Altes (1931-05-15)15 May 1931 Amsterdam, Netherlands |
| Died | 19 February 2025(2025-02-19) (aged 93) |
| Political party | People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (from 1956) |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 3 sons |
| Residence(s) | Rotterdam, Netherlands |
| Alma mater | Leiden University (Bachelor of Laws,Master of Laws) |
| Occupation | Politician ·Jurist ·Lawyer ·Corporate director ·Nonprofit director ·Editor ·Author |
Frederik "Frits"Korthals Altes (15 May 1931 – 19 February 2025) was a Dutch politician of thePeople's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) and jurist. He was granted the honorary title ofMinister of State on 26 October 2001.
Korthals Altes attended theBarlaeus Gymnasium inAmsterdam from June 1937 until July 1943 and applied at theLeiden University in June 1951majoring inLaw and obtaining aBachelor of Laws degree in June 1953 before graduating with aMaster of Laws degree in July 1957. Korthals Altes worked as a lawyer inRotterdam from August 1957 until November 1982.
Korthals Altes died on 19 February 2025, at the age of 93.[1]
Korthals Altes served asChairman of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy from 15 March 1975 until 22 May 1981. Korthals Altes was elected to theSenate after the1981 Senate election, taking office on 10 June 1981. After the1982 general election, Korthals Altes was appointedMinister of Justice in theLubbers I cabinet, taking office on 4 November 1982. Korthals Altes also served as actingMinister of the Interior from 20 February 1986 until 12 March 1986 following the death ofKoos Rietkerk. After the1986 general election, Korthals Altes continued as Minister of Justice in theLubbers II cabinet, taking office on 14 July 1986. Korthals Altes again served as acting Minister of the Interior from 26 January 1987 until 3 February 1987 during a medical leave of absence ofKees van Dijk untilMinister of Social Affairs and EmploymentJan de Koning took over as acting Minister of the Interior. Korthals Altes was elected to theHouse of Representatives in the1989 general election, taking office on 14 September 1989. The Lubbers II cabinet was replaced by theLubbers III cabinet on 7 November 1989, and he continued to serve in the House of Representatives as afrontbencher.
In April 1991 Korthals Altes announced that he wanted to return to the Senate. In the1991 Senate election, Korthals Altes was elected again to the Senate; he resigned from the House of Representatives upon his installation as a member of the Senate on 11 June 1991, and served as a frontbencher chairing several parliamentary committees. Korthals Altes also became active in the private and public sectors, occupying numerous seats as a corporate director and nonprofit director on boards of directors and supervisory boards (Unilever,KPN,Randstad NV,Arcadis,Carnegie Foundation,Stichting INGKA Foundation, and theInstitute of International Relations Clingendael), and serving on several state commissions and councils on behalf of the government. Following the 1991 Senate election, Korthals Altes was selected asparliamentary leader of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy in the Senate, taking office on 13 June 1995. Korthals Altes was nominated asPresident of the Senate following the appointment ofHerman Tjeenk Willink asVice-President of the Council of State, taking office on 11 March 1997. In September 2001, Korthals Altes announced his retirement from national politics. He resigned as President of the Senate and a member of the Senate on 2 October 2001.
With his resignation from the senate in 2001, he was nominated as Minister of State. Earlier in 1997, the VVD gave him an honorary membership. The Dutch Queen nominated Korthals Altes, alongside Rein Jan Hoekstra (CDA), asinformateur, after a first round of talks between the CDA and Labour Party (PvdA) to form a new cabinet failed. Thesecond Balkenende cabinet between the VVD, CDA and D66, was installed in May 2003.
Korthals Altes chaired a commission in 2007 that looked into the Dutch election process. The final report of the commission advised the government to abandon electronic voting machines, as they lack a paper trail.
Netherlands:Minister of State with style ofExcellency (26 October 2001)
Commander of theOrder of Orange-Nassau (20 November 1989)
Officer of theOrder of Orange-Nassau (13 May 1981)
Belgium: Grand Cross of theOrder of the Crown (6 July 1986)
France:
Germany: Grand Cross 1st Class of theOrder of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (30 May 1985)
Japan: Grand Cordon of theOrder of the Sacred Treasure (12 May 2000)
Luxembourg: Grand Cross of theOrder of the Oak Crown (15 November 1983)
Portugal: Grand Cross of theOrder of Merit (2 October 1989)
Spain: Knight Grand Cross of theOrder of Isabella the Catholic (1 December 1998) Netherlands: Honorary Member of thePeople's Party for Freedom and Democracy (23 May 1997)
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Chairman of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy 1975–1981 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Parliamentary leader of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy in theSenate 1995–1997 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Minister of Justice 1982–1989 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister of the Interior Ad interim 1986 1987 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Succeeded by Jan de Koning Ad interim | |
| Preceded by | President of the Senate 1997–2001 | Succeeded by |
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| International | |
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| National | |
