Ebba Lodden

She was born in Tønsberg as a daughter of tailor Edvard Anton Sjuve and Asta Johanne Hansen (1888–1974). In 1936 she married Ingolf Lodden (1905–1962) and took his surname. In her early career she worked as a housemaid (for politician Claudia Olsen), factory worker, office clerk for the Norwegian Seafarers' Union before running a manufacturing business from 1942 to 1957. She was involved in the Norwegian resistance movement, and had joined the Workers' Youth League at the age of sixteen.[1]

In 1945 she stood for election in the Market towns of Vestfold county.[2] In the same year her husband was hired in the Arendal newspaper Tiden and the family moved there. Lodden was a member of Arendal city council from 1948 to 1963, serving as deputy mayor from 1954 to 1960.[1] She served as a deputy representative to the Parliament of Norway from Aust-Agder during the terms 1950–1953, 1958–1961 and 1961–1965.[3] She was a national board member of the Labour Party for sixteen years. From 1972 to 1974 she was a member of Tønsberg city council.[1]

She was a member of Statens Velferdsråd for handelsflåten from 1953 to 1971, and from 1960 to 1977 she was the leader of the Norwegian Consumer Council. She also had a parallel civil servant career, in Tønsberg municipality from 1963. From 1967 to 1974 she was the municipal director of social affairs.[1] Her career as a public servant toned out with the post of County Governor of Aust-Agder, which she held from 1974 to 1983.[3] She was the first female County Governor in Norway.[1]

Lodden was a board member of Vestfold Hospital from 1968 to 1974, and chaired Rikshospitalet from 1978 to 1982.[1] She also chaired the board of Statens edruskapsdirektorat, a predecessor of the Norwegian Directorate of Health, from 1980 to 1981. She was later deputy chair from 1982 to 1988, and a board member from 1989 to 1990.[3]

In 1977 she was decorated as a Commander of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav. She died in January 1997 in Tønsberg.[1]