Julius Terpstra | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of theHouse of Representatives | |
| In office 20 May 2020 – 30 March 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Erik Ronnes |
| Alderman inLeiden | |
| Assumed office 16 June 2022 | |
| Member of the Leidenmunicipal council | |
| In office 30 March 2022 – 14 June 2022 | |
| Succeeded by | Sebastiaan van der Veer |
| Duoraadslid in theLeiden municipal council | |
| In office 1 May 2014 – 16 May 2020 | |
| Succeeded by | Tobias Sandoval Garcia |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Julius Huibert Terpstra (1989-02-21)21 February 1989 (age 36) Emmeloord,Flevoland |
| Political party | Christian Democratic Appeal |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 1 |
| Alma mater | Leiden University |
Julius Huibert Terpstra (born 21 February 1989) is a Dutch politician, who served as a member of theHouse of Representatives in the years 2020–21. He is a member of the political partyChristian Democratic Appeal (CDA). He had served asduoraadslid in theLeiden municipal council and as chair ofChristian Democratic Youth Appeal, CDA's youth organization. Following his membership of the House, Terpstra returned to Leiden politics and becamealderman for construction following the2022 municipal elections, having been his party'slead candidate.
Terpstra was born inEmmeloord, a town inFlevoland, on 21 February 1989.[1] He attended Greijdanus College before studying in England for one year.[2] Subsequently, he studied history atLeiden University between 2009 and 2015, earning aMaster of Arts degree.[3] While studying, he was a member of the fraternityNavigators and played soccer at LSVV '70.[4][5]
In 2009, he joined the Leiden affiliate ofChristian Democratic Youth Appeal (CDJA) as treasurer.[6] One year later, he became the leader of CDJA Leiden, a position in which he served for two years.[7] Terpstra was elected chair of the national organization CDJA in May 2013 by its members.[8] His second term began two years later.[9] During his tenure, he advocated for a constitutional requirement for abalanced budget, increasing spending on defense, banning the sale of tobacco in supermarkets, and reinstitutingconscription.[10][11][12][13] Furthermore, he opposed an elected instead of an appointed mayor.[14] Terpstra stepped down as chair on January 1, 2017, to focus on his job and his campaign to become a member of the House of Representatives.[15]
He participated in the2014 municipal elections, being sixth on CDA'sparty list inLeiden.[16] Terpstra was not elected, as his party received four seats. In May, he was appointedduoraadslid in the Leiden municipal council. In August 2016, Terpstra took a job at Nautus, anAmersfoort consultancy firm for municipalities.[17] When CDA won three seats in Leiden during the2018 municipal elections, he was fourth on the party list.[18] He remained aduoraadslid. Shortly after becoming a member of parliament in 2020, he left Nautus and the Leiden municipal council.[17] In the municipal council, he had been on the education and society committee and had focussed on sport policy.[19]
Terpstra ran for House member during the2017 general election. During the campaign, he said that abolishing thestudent loan system was his priority.[20] He was placed 23rd on the CDA's party list and received 1,477preferential votes.[21] His party won nineteen seats, resulting in Terpstra not being elected. AfterErik Ronnes had vacated his seat to join North Brabant'sprovincial-executive, Terpstra was sworn in as MP on 20 May 2020.[6] Terpstra became the CDA's spokesperson in the area of housing,spatial planning, and the Environment and Planning Act.[22] In the House, he was a member of the Committee for the Interior.[23]
He has advocated for addressing the Dutch housing shortage and for reducing difficulties that young people face when trying to buy their first house. In July 2020, Terpstra introduced amotion, which was approved unanimously by the House, calling for the consideration of previous rent payments when applying for a mortgage. This would make it easier to get financing for a house for people who have already been paying rent at a higher or similar level as the mortgage would be.[24] He has also unsuccessfully called for the interior minister to forceUtrecht to build 25,000–30,000 homes in the polders Rijnenburg and Reijerscop.[25] A motion by Terpstra andDaniel Koerhuis was narrowly passed by the House.[26]
Terpstra was the 20th candidate of the CDA during the2021 general election.[27] He was not re-elected, as his party won fifteen seats. Terpstra personally received 1,297 votes.[28]
Following his membership of the House, Terpstra started working for construction firmHeijmans in July 2021. He was the CDA'slead candidate in theMarch 2022 Dutch municipal election in Leiden.[1][29] The local campaign was notable for humorously distancing itself from the national party. Its website stated that voters might think twice about voting for the CDA nationally, but that the local party is allowed to be different due to the lack of Kim Jung Hoekstra practices, combining the names of party leaderWopke Hoekstra and North Korean dictatorKim Jong-un.[30] The CDA lost one of its three seats – following national polling trends – and Terpstra was sworn into the council on 30 March.[31][32][33] The CDA joined Leiden's newgoverning coalition as its only non-leftist member party. Terpstra represented his party in themunicipal executive asalderman responsible for housing, construction, and welfare.[34] His term started on 16 June, having stepped down as councilor two days before.[35][36] That same month, investigative journalism platform Follow the Money wrote that sites Terpstra and Koerhuis had promoted for housing developments as members of parliament were partially owned by major property developers. Terpstra subsequently denied having had ties with developers.[37] In August 2023, Terpstra proposed to the municipal council to bar investors from buying houses in Leiden worth less than €355,000 in order to reduce competition on the housing market. Additionally, he suggested restricting the splitting of houses into student residences as well as mandating that landlords apply for a permit in certain neighborhoods to ensure good renting practices.[38]
Terpstra was offered a seat in the House of Representatives following the resignation ofRaymond Knops in February 2023. He declined it to stay on as alderman.[39]
While an MP, Terpstra lived in theSouth Holland cityLeiden with his wife Kirsten Kok.[23] They met while studying and married in July 2018, and they have a daughter.[4][40]Nederlands Dagblad reported in 2013 that Terpstra was a member of theReformed Church (Liberated).[3]
 |
| Year | Body | Party | Pos. | Votes | Result | Ref. | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party seats | Individual | |||||||
| 2021 | House of Representatives | Christian Democratic Appeal | 20 | 665 | 15 | Lost | [41] | |
