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Kees van der Staaij

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In this Dutch name, the surname is Van der Staaij, not Staaij.
Kees van der Staaij
Leader of the Reformed Political Party
In office
27 March 2010 – 25 August 2023
Preceded byBas van der Vlies
Succeeded byChris Stoffer
Leader of the Reformed Political Party
in the House of Representatives
In office
10 May 2010 – 25 August 2023
Preceded byBas van der Vlies
Succeeded byChris Stoffer
Member of the House of Representatives
In office
19 May 1998 – 5 December 2023
Personal details
Born
Cornelis Gerrit van der Staaij

(1968-09-12) 12 September 1968 (age 56)
Vlaardingen, Netherlands
Political partyReformed Political Party
Spouse
Marlies van Ree
​
(m. 1994)​
ResidenceBenthuizen
Alma materLeiden University (LLM)
Occupation
Website(in Dutch) Official website
Kees van der Staaij introducing himself in English
recorded October 2017

Cornelis Gerrit "Kees" van der Staaij (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈkeːs fɑn dər ˈstaːi];[a] born 12 September 1968) is a Dutch politician who served as a member of the House of Representatives from 1998 to 2023 and Leader of the Reformed Political Party (Staatkundig Gereformeerde Partij, SGP) between 2010 and 2023.[1] As a parliamentarian, he focused on matters of judiciary, home affairs, Kingdom relations, foreign policy, the European Union, development aid, the defense, public health, welfare, sports, immigration and political asylum. Van der Staaij had been the longest running member of the House of Representatives from 2017 until 2023.

Early life

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Van der Staaij was born in Vlaardingen, a city in the province of South Holland. His father was a civil servant in the municipality Maartensdijk.

He went to two Reformed primary schools in Vlaardingen (1974–1979) and Geldermalsen (1979–1980) and to a Reformed secondary school in Amersfoort (1980–1986). He studied law at Leiden University, specialising in constitutional and administrative law.

Politics

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Van der Staaij was attracted to politics and became a member of the Reformed Political Party in 1986.

After several jobs at the Council of State, he was elected to the House of Representatives in 1998. In 2010 he became party leader as well as parliamentary leader in both cases succeeding Bas van der Vlies. He led his party as lead candidate in the 2010, 2012 and 2017 general elections.[2]

Van der Staaij is considered one of the most conservative and right-wing political leaders in the Netherlands. He signed the anti-LGBTQI Nashville Statement and supported anti-abortion organisations, making sure such organisations were granted more subsidies. Before the 2012 Dutch general election, when asked whether he agreed with Todd Akin's comments on "legitimate rape" and pregnancy, he said "it is a fact" that women "seldom" become pregnant after being raped.[3] He and his party focus on the importance of faith and community in society and frequently advocate for theocracy.[4]

Van der Staaij again served as lead candidate for the SGP in the 2021 general election.[5] The SGP won 3 out of the 150 seats in the House of Representatives. [6] Van der Staaij announced that he would not seek re-election in November 2023.[7] He succeeded Marja van Bijsterveldt as special envoy for the maritime industry, advising the Minister of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy, in February 2024, and he returned to the Council of State in June 2024 as a state councilor in its advisory division.[8][9]

Electoral history

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Electoral history of Kees van der Staaij
Year Body Party Pos. Votes Result Ref.
Party seats Individual
1998 House of Representatives Reformed Political Party 3 2,250 3 Won
2002 House of Representatives 2 7,107 2 Won
2003 House of Representatives 2 8,060 2 Won
2006 House of Representatives 2 5,878 2 Won
2010 House of Representatives 1 152,493 2 Won
2012 House of Representatives 1 182,189 3 Won
2017 House of Representatives 1 196,205 3 Won
2021 House of Representatives 1 193,605 3 Won
2024 European Parliament 39[b] 9,276 1 Lost [10]

Notes

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  1. ^ In isolation, van is pronounced [vɑn] or also [fɑn].
  2. ^ Van der Staaij participated as lijstduwer.

References

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  1. ^ du Pré, Raoul (2023-08-25). "De politieke generatiewissel raakt zelfs de SGP: Kees van der Staaij verlaat het toneel". de Volkskrant (in Dutch). Retrieved 2023-11-10.
  2. ^ (in Dutch) Van der Staaij lijsttrekker SGP, Nederland Kiest - Tweede Kamerverkiezingen 2010, 27 March 2010
  3. ^ Cluskey, Peter (August 31, 2012). "Dutch candidate echoes Akin comments on rape and abortion". The Irish Times. Retrieved June 28, 2022.
  4. ^ "Nashvilleverklaring krijgt pastoraal nawoord (Nashville Statement gets pastoral postscript)". RD - reformatorisch Dagblad. 2019-01-04. Archived from the original on 2019-01-04. Retrieved 2019-01-05.
  5. ^ Kees van der Staaij opnieuw lijsttrekker, parlement.com (in Dutch)
  6. ^ Kiesraad (2021-03-26). "Officiële uitslag Tweede Kamerverkiezing 17 maart 2021 - Nieuwsbericht - Kiesraad.nl". www.kiesraad.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 2021-04-10.
  7. ^ "Kees van der Staaij, SGP-leider én langstzittende Kamerlid, stopt ermee". RTL Nieuws (in Dutch). 2023-08-25. Retrieved 2023-08-29.
  8. ^ Den Braber, Dick (26 January 2024). "Maritieme sector wijst koning op concurrentie uit China" [Maritime industry makes king aware of Chinese competition]. Reformatorisch Dagblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  9. ^ "Oud-SGP-voorman Van der Staaij naar Raad van State" [Former SGP leader Van der Staaij to Council of State]. NOS (in Dutch). 26 April 2024. Retrieved 26 April 2024.
  10. ^ "Proces-verbaal centraal stembureau uitslag verkiezing Europees Parlement Model P22-1" [Central electoral council report of the results of the election of the European Parliament Model P22-1] (PDF). Dutch Electoral Council (in Dutch). 19 June 2024. pp. 25–26, 44. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
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Party political offices
Preceded by Leader of the Reformed Political Party
2010–2023 		Succeeded by
Leader of the Reformed Political Party
in the House of Representatives
2010–present 		Incumbent
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