Government of Amsterdam

The Government of Amsterdam consists of several territorial and functional forms of local and regional government. The principal form of government is the municipality of Amsterdam, Netherlands. The municipality's territory covers the city of Amsterdam as well as a number of small towns. The city of Amsterdam is also part of several functional forms of regional government. These include the Waterschap (water board) of Amstel, Gooi en Vecht, which is responsible for water management, and the Stadsregio (City Region) of Amsterdam, which has responsibilities in the areas of spatial planning and public transport.

The municipality of Amsterdam borders the municipalities of Diemen, Abcoude, Ouder-Amstel and Amstelveen in the south, Haarlemmermeer and Haarlemmerliede en Spaarnwoude in the west, and Zaanstad, Oostzaan, Landsmeer and Waterland in the north.

Since March 24th 2022 the city of Weesp is part of the municipality of Amsterdam.

Municipal government

Femke Halsema, mayor of Amsterdam since 2018.
Amsterdam City Council

Gemeenteraad van Amsterdam
Coat of arms or logo
Type
Type
Leadership
Chairperson
Structure
Seats45
Political groups
Government (24)[1]
  •   PvdA (9)
  •   GL (8)
  •   D66 (7)

Opposition (21)

Elections
Last election
2022
Next election
2026
Meeting place
Amsterdam City Hall, located at Amstel 1 (Stopera building)
Website
https://www.amsterdam.nl/en/governance/city-council/

The city of Amsterdam is a municipality under the Dutch Municipalities Act. It is governed by a municipal council (gemeenteraad, also known as 'city council', the principal legislative authority), a municipal executive board (college van burgemeester en wethouders), and a mayor (burgemeester). The mayor is both a member of the municipal executive board and an individual authority with a number of statutory responsibilities, mainly in the area of maintaining public order. The municipal council has 45 seats. Its members are elected for a four-year term through citywide elections on the basis of proportional representation.[2] Under the Municipalities Act, the mayor is appointed for a six-year term by the national government upon nomination by the municipal council. The other members of the executive board (wethouders, or 'alderpersons') are appointed directly by the municipal council, but may be dismissed at any time after a no-confidence vote in the council. Because of this parliamentary system, the alderpersons are not appointed until a governing majority in the council has reached a coalition agreement following council elections.

In July 2010, Eberhard van der Laan (Labour Party) was appointed mayor of Amsterdam by the national government for a six-year term after being nominated by the Amsterdam municipal council.[3] After the 2014 municipal council elections, a governing majority of D66, VVD and SP was formed - the first coalition without the Labour Party since World War II.[4] Next to the mayor, the municipal executive board consists of eight wethouders ('alderpersons') appointed by the municipal council: four D66 alderpersons, two VVD alderpersons and two SP alderpersons.[5]

Municipal Government 2006–2010

After the 2006 municipal elections a coalition was formed between PvdA and GroenLinks, with a majority of 27 out of 45. These elections saw a political landslide throughout the country, with a strong shift to the left, of which Amsterdam was a prime example. The much talked about all-left-wing coalition of PvdA, GroenLinks and SP that polls indicate would become possible after the national elections of 2006 and that was such a political success in Nijmegen had its largest majority in Amsterdam, apart from some small towns. PvdA even needed only 3 more seats to form a coalition and could thus take its pick, which forced potential coalition partners to give in on a lot of issues. In the case of GroenLinks, this was mostly the policy of preventive searching by the police, which they were opposed to but had to allow.

In total, 24 parties took part in the elections, including 11 new ones, but only 7 got seats.

Municipal Executives
NamePortfolioParty
Job Cohenmayor
Safety & Internal Affairs
PvdA
Lodewijk Asschervice-mayor
Finance & Economy
PvdA
Freek Ossel[6]Education & IncomePvdA
Carolien GehrelsCulture & RecreationPvdA
Hans Gerson[7]Transport & HousingPvdA
Maarten van PoelgeestSpatial PlanningGL
Marijke VosEnvironment & HealthGL
Municipal Council
Partyseatschange
from
2002
Labour Party20Increase 5
VVD8Decrease 1
GreenLeft7Increase 1
Socialist Party6Increase 2
Christian Democratic Appeal2Decrease 2
Democrats 662Decrease 1
AA/De Groenen0Decrease 1
Mokum Mobiel0Decrease 1
Total45-

Municipal Government 2010–2014

Dutch municipal elections, 2010:

Municipal Executives
NamePortfolioParty
Eberhard van der Laanmayor
Safety & Internal Affairs
PvdA
Pieter Hilhorst[8]vice-mayor
Finance & Education
PvdA
Freek OsselHousingPvdA
Carolien GehrelsEconomy & CulturePvdA
Eric van der BurgHealth & SchipholVVD
Eric WiebesTransportVVD
Maarten van PoelgeestSpatial PlanningGL
Andrée van EsIncomeGL
Municipal Council
Partyseatschange
from
2006
Labour Party15Decrease 5
VVD8Steady 0
GreenLeft7Steady 0
Democrats 667Increase 5
Socialist Party3Decrease 3
Christian Democratic Appeal2Steady 0
Save Amsterdam1Increase 1
Proud of the Netherlands1Increase 1
Party for the Animals1Increase 1
Total45-

Municipal Government 2014–2018

Dutch municipal elections, 2014:

Municipal Executives
NamePortfolioParty
Eberhard van der Laanmayor
Safety, Internal Affairs & Finance
PvdA
Kajsa Ollongrenvice-mayor
Amsterdam-Centrum, Economy, Port, Schiphol & Culture
D66
Udo KockAmsterdam-West, Finance & Water Resource ManagementD66
Simone KukenheimAmsterdam-Oost, Education & IntegrationD66
Abdeluheb ChohoPublic Space, Climate & ICTD66
Eric van der BurgAmsterdam-Zuid, Health, Sport & Spatial PlanningVVD
Pieter LitjensAmsterdam-Zuidoost, Transport & Real EstateVVD
Laurens IvensAmsterdam-Noord, Housing & Animal WelfareSP
Arjan VliegenthartAmsterdam Nieuw-West, Labour, Income & PovertySP
Municipal Council
Partyseatschange
from
2010
Democrats 6614Increase 7
Labour Party10Decrease 5
VVD6Decrease 2
GreenLeft6Decrease 1
Socialist Party6Increase 3
Christian Democratic Appeal1Decrease 1
Party for the Animals1Steady 0
Party for the Senior Citizens1Increase 1
Save Amsterdam0Decrease 1
Proud of the Netherlands0Decrease 1
Total45-

Municipal Government 2018–2022

Dutch municipal elections, 2018:

Municipal Executives
NamePortfolioParty
Femke HalsemaMayor of Amsterdam
General Affairs, Safety, Legal Affairs, & Communications
GL
Marieke van DoorninckSpatial Development, & SustainabilityGL
Rutger Groot WassinkSocial Affairs, Democratization, & DiversityGL
Touria MelianiArts and Culture, & Digital CityGL
Sharon DijksmaTraffic and Transport, Water, & Air qualityPvdA
Marjolein MoormanEducation, Poverty, & Civic IntegrationPvdA
Udo KockFinance, Economic Affairs, & ZuidasD66
Simone KukenheimCare, Youth, Education and Training, & SportD66
Laurens IvensHousing, Construction, & Public SpaceSP
Party Votes % +/ Seats +/
GreenLeft GL 70,880 20.4 +9.6 10 +4
Democrats 66 D66 55,724 16.1 −10.7 8 −6
People's Party for Freedom and Democracy VVD 39,702 11.4 +0.2 6 +0
Labour Party PvdA 37,181 10.7 −7.7 5 −5
Socialist Party SP 26,070 7.5 −3.7 3 −3
Party for the Animals PvdD 24,672 7.1 +4.3 3 +2
Denk DENK 23,138 6.7 New 3 New
Forum for Democracy FvD 20,015 5.8 New 3 New
Christian Democratic Appeal CDA 11,991 3.5 +0.7 1 +0
Party for the Elderly PvdO 7,752 2.2 +0.1 1 +0
Christian Union CU 6,837 2.0 +0.2 1 +1
Amsterdam Bij1 BIJ1 6,571 1.9 New 1 New
Pirate Party Amsterdam PPNL 4,459 1.3 −0.5 0 +0
50PLUS 50+ 4,233 1.2 New 0 New
Other 7,923 2.3 0
Total valid votes 347,148 100 45
Invalid/blank votes 4,511 1.3
Total & turnout 351,659 51.2 +1.9
Source: Verkiezingsuitslagen


Municipal Government 2022–present

Municipal Executives
NamePortfolioParty
Femke HalsemaMayor of Amsterdam
General Affairs, Safety, Legal Affairs, & Communications
GL
Marjolein MoormanEducation, Poverty, Civic Integration, Masterplan ZuidoostPvdA
Sofyan MbarkiEconomic Affairs, Sport & Recreation, MBO Agenda, Vocational Education & Labour Market Integration, Youth Work, Inner City AffairsPvdA
Hester van BurenFinance, Personnel & Organisation, Coordination of operations, Services, Air and Sea Port, Coordination of purchasingPvdA
Rutger Groot WassinkSocial Affairs, Shelter, Municipal Holdings, Democratization, Development Plan Nieuw-WestGL
Zita PelsSustainability & Circular Economy, Public HousingGL
Touria MelianiArts and Culture, Monuments & Heritage, Events, Inclusion and Antidiscrimination policyGL
Reinier van DantzigHousing construction, Land & Development, Spatial PlanningD66
Melanie van der HorstTraffic, transport & air quality, Public Space & Green, Water, Development Plan Amsterdam-Noord)D66
Shula RijxmanCare & social development, Public Health & Prevention, ICT and Digital City, Local Media, ParticipationsD66


PartyVotes%Seats+/–
Labour Party57,09317.579+4
GroenLinks48,09614.808–2
Democrats 6644,73213.777–1
People's Party for Freedom and Democracy34,18010.525–1
Amsterdam BIJ122,6236.963+2
Party for the Animals22,0316.7830
Volt14,0434.322New
Socialist Party14,0364.322–1
JA2113,6914.212New
DENK13,0394.012–1
Christian Democratic Appeal8,2702.5510
Forum for Democracy6,6882.061–2
Other parties26,3478.110–2
Total324,869100.0045
Valid votes324,86999.11
Invalid/blank votes2,9240.89
Total votes327,793100.00
Registered voters/turnout703,71446.58
Source: Kiesraad

Boroughs

Eight boroughs of Amsterdam.

Unlike most other Dutch municipalities, Amsterdam is subdivided into eight boroughs (stadsdelen or 'districts'), a system that was implemented in the 1980s and significantly reformed in 2014. Before 2014, the boroughs were responsible for many activities that previously had been run by the central city. The idea was to bring the government closer to the people. All of these had their own district council (deelraad), chosen by a popular election. Local decisions were made at borough level, and only affairs pertaining the whole city (like major infrastructural projects), were delegated to the central city council. As of 2014, the powers of the boroughs have been significantly reduced, although they still have an elected council called bestuurscommissie ('district committee').

The boroughs are:

The eighth, Westpoort, covers the western harbour area of Amsterdam. Because it has very few inhabitants it is governed by the central municipal council.

Mayors

The mayor of Amsterdam is the head of the city council. The current mayor is Femke Halsema. The mayors since World War II are:

Population centers

Amsterdam, Driemond, Durgerdam, Holysloot, 't Nopeind, Osdorp, Ransdorp, Sloten, Sloterdijk, Zunderdorp.

International cooperation

References

  1. "The College of Mayor and Alderpersons".
  2. "City Council & college of Alderpersons". Iamsterdam.com. Archived from the original on 2014-08-19. Retrieved 2014-08-14.
  3. "Eberhard van der Laan to be Amsterdam's new mayor". DutchNews.nl. June 24, 2010. Retrieved August 13, 2014.
  4. Britt Slegers (Jun 12, 2014). "Three-party coalition in Amsterdam". NL Times. Retrieved Aug 13, 2014.
  5. "College van burgemeester en wethouders" (in Dutch). City of Amsterdam. Retrieved 2014-08-13.
  6. Replaced Hennah Buyne since March/April 2008. Buyne replaced Ahmed Aboutaleb since March 14, 2007.
  7. Replaced Tjeerd Herrema since April 1, 2009.
  8. Replaced Lodewijk Asscher since November 28, 2012.
  9. "Bureau Internationale Betrekkingen". www.amsterdam.nl. Bureau Internationale Betrekkingen, City of Amsterdam. Archived from the original on 2006-12-06. Retrieved 2007-04-05.

52°22′N 4°53′E

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