Simone Kerseboom (born 26 April 1984) is a Dutch politician of the conservative populist party Forum for Democracy (FvD). She has been a member of the House of Representatives since the 2021 general election, and she served on the States of Limburg in the years 2019–2023. Kerseboom lived in South Africa for about twenty years and holds a doctorate from Rhodes University.
Simone Kerseboom | |
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![]() Kerseboom (2021) | |
Member of the House of Representatives | |
In office 28 March 2023 – 5 December 2023 | |
Preceded by | Ralf Dekker |
In office 31 March 2021 – 15 August 2022 | |
Succeeded by | Ralf Dekker |
Member of the States of Limburg | |
In office 6 December 2022 – 28 March 2023 | |
Preceded by | Ruud Burlet |
In office 28 March 2019[1] – 15 August 2022 | |
Succeeded by | Ruud Burlet |
Personal details | |
Born | Roosendaal, Netherlands | 26 April 1984
Political party | Forum for Democracy |
Children | 1 |
Residence(s) | Maastricht, Netherlands |
Alma mater | Rhodes University |
Occupation |
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Early life and career
Kerseboom was born in the North Brabant city of Roosendaal, and she moved with her parents and younger brother in 1996 to South Africa, the country where her mother was born.[2] Her parents had met in South Africa in the 1970s, when her father was working for a dredging project at the port of Port Elizabeth, and he would later become a sea captain.[3] Kerseboom studied history at Rhodes University, obtaining her doctorate after completing her dissertation about the nation state and national identity.[4][5] Kerseboom returned to the Netherlands in 2015 and started working as an English–Dutch translator, editor, and writer. She owned a business called Novel Translations & Language Services.[3][4][6]
Politics
In 2017, Kerseboom wrote an opinion piece on the website ThePostOnline, in which she warned that "a shared national identity appears to be eroding rapidly" in the Netherlands. She wrote that "any remnants of national pride and values are systematically being replaced by a relentless supranationalism accompanied by the politically correct abstract concepts of multiculturalism and diversity which threaten Dutch sovereignty and national cohesion by emphasizing the differences between citizens instead of celebrating what we have in common".[7][8]
Kerseboom joined Forum for Democracy and was their second candidate in Limburg in the 2019 provincial elections. The party, a newcomer, won seven seats, causing Kerseboom to receive a seat in the States of Limburg.[9] When FvD's lead candidate left the council to become a member of the provincial executive, Kerseboom succeeded him as caucus leader.[10] In November 2020, newspaper Het Parool published an article about extremist ideas held by members of the party's youth wing, which caused a crisis within Forum for Democracy. Four out of the seven FvD members of the States of Limburg left the party, while Kerseboom expressed her continuing support for party leader Thierry Baudet.[11][12]
Forum for Democracy announced the following month that Kerseboom would appear fifth on its party list in the 2021 general election.[13] She was elected, receiving 7,025 preference votes, and entered the House of Representatives on 31 March.[14] She kept her seat in the States of Limburg but stepped down as caucus leader.[15] Kerseboom became her party's spokesperson for foreign affairs, foreign trade, education, culture, and science, and she is on the Committees for Education, Culture and Science; for Foreign Affairs; and for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation. She is also part of the contact groups United Kingdom and United States and of the Benelux Interparliamentary Consultative Council.[16][6] Kerseboom violated social distancing rules – in effect due to the COVID-19 pandemic – after holding her maiden speech, when fellow member of parliament Gideon van Meijeren congratulated her by kissing and hugging her.[17]
Kerseboom temporarily stepped down as member of the House of Representatives and the States of Limburg starting on 16 August 2022 because of her maternity leave. She extended her House leave after 6 December, but she returned to the States Provincial after the sixteen-week period [18][19][20][21] Her House leave ended on 28 March 2023.[20] Kerseboom sought a second term as provincial councilor in the March 2023 elections as Forum for Democracy's second candidate. However, her party won only one seat in Limburg, bringing an end to her tenure.[22] Kerseboom was the party's third candidate in the May 2023 Senate election, and she announced that she would leave the House for a Senate membership – a part-time position – if she could not combine motherhood with a House seat.[23] However, Kerseboom was not elected as her party won only one seat in the Senate, and she stayed in the House.[24] She did not run for re-election in the November 2023 general election, citing personal reasons, and appeared on the party list only as a lijstduwer.[25]
Personal life
Kerseboom lives in the Limburg city of Maastricht.[16] She was engaged, while a member of parliament, and her daughter was born in 2022.[3][21]
Electoral history
Year | Body | Party | Pos. | Votes | Result | Ref. | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Party seats | Individual | |||||||
2021 | House of Representatives | Forum for Democracy | 5 | 7,025 | 8 | Won | [26] | |
2023 | House of Representatives | Forum for Democracy | 48 | 407 | 3 | Lost[a] | [27] |
Notes
- ^ Kerseboom participated as a lijstduwer.
References
- ^ "(PS) Provinciale Staten" [(PS) States Provincial]. Provincie Limburg (in Dutch). Retrieved 13 June 2021.
- ^ Goossen, Hans (28 July 2021). "Limburgs Kamerlid Simone Kerseboom: 'Komma's verschuiven in Den Haag'" [Limburg MP Simone Kerseboom: 'Moving the commas in The Hague']. De Limburger (in Dutch). Retrieved 25 August 2021.
- ^ a b c "Simone Kerseboom" (Podcast). Op persoonlijke titel (in Dutch). Lissauer.com. 11 April 2022. Retrieved 23 May 2022 – via SoundCloud.
- ^ a b Van Kampen, Marco (22 March 2019). "Zoon zette FvD-lijsttrekker Ruud Burlet aan het denken: 'Hij voelt zich steeds minder thuis in dit land'" [Son made FvD lead candidate Ruud Burlet think: 'He feels less and less at home in this country']. De Limburger (in Dutch). Retrieved 13 June 2021.
- ^ Boersema, Wendelmoet (18 March 2021). "Met deze mannen (en één vrouw) gaat Thierry Baudet de Tweede Kamer in" [Thierry Baudet will enter the House of Representatives with these men (and one woman)]. Trouw (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 June 2021.
- ^ a b "Tweede Kamer" [House of Representatives]. FVD (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 June 2021.
- ^ Stokmans, Derk; Van de Wiel, Clara (27 March 2019). "Wie zijn de nieuwe Statenleden van Forum voor Democratie?" [Who are the new Forum for Democracy provincial council members?]. NRC (in Dutch). Retrieved 13 June 2021.
- ^ Kerseboom, Simone (29 October 2017). "Finding orange in the rainbow: multicultural nationalism in a supranationalist society". ThePostOnline. Archived from the original on 13 June 2021. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
- ^ "Uitslag provincie Limburg provinciale statenverkiezing 2019" [Limburg results 2019 provincial elections]. Kiesraad (in Dutch). 25 March 2019. p. 41. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 May 2021. Retrieved 13 June 2021.
- ^ Goossen, Hans (30 September 2019). "'Interne kwestie' splijt Forum voor Democratie in Limburg" ['Internal matter' splits Forum for Democracy in Limburg]. De Limburger (in Dutch). Retrieved 13 June 2021.
- ^ Peeters, Jule (19 December 2020). "Vertrokken FvD'ers verder als 'Samen voor Limburg'" [Departed FvD members continue as 'Samen voor Limburg']. De Limburger (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 June 2021.
- ^ Banach, Benti; Peeters, Jule (3 December 2020). "Scheuring Limburgse fractie Forum voor Democratie compleet: 'Niet gekozen om in slecht geregisseerde soap te belanden'" [Split Limburg caucus Forum for Democracy complete: 'Haven't chosen to end up in a badly-directed soap']. De Limburger (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 June 2021.
- ^ Korteweg, Ariejan (27 December 2020). "Baudet handhaaft Freek Jansen op Kamerlijst vol hardliners" [Baudet keeps Freek Jansen on party list filled with hardliners]. de Volkskrant (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 June 2021.
- ^ "Uitslag Tweede Kamerverkiezing 17 maart 2021 Proces-verbaal" [Results general election 17 March 2021 Report] (PDF). Kiesraad (in Dutch). 29 March 2021. p. 238. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
- ^ Hensels, Jan (24 March 2021). "Limburgs FvD-Kamerlid Simone Kerseboom blijft voorlopig ook lid van Provinciale Staten" [Limburg FvD MP Simone Kerseboom will remain a member of the States Provincial for the time being]. De Limburger (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 June 2021.
- ^ a b "Simone Kerseboom". Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal. 31 March 2021. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
- ^ Boonman, Vera (19 May 2021). "Zoenende Kamerleden ondanks nadruk op coronaregels in Tweede Kamer" [Kissing MPs despite emphasis on corona rules in House of Representatives]. NRC (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 June 2021.
- ^ "Installatie van nieuwe Statenleden de heer R. Burlet en de heer R. Tegels" [Installation of new States members Mr. R. Burlet and Mr. R Tegels]. Provincie Limburg (Press release) (in Dutch). 16 September 2022. Retrieved 14 October 2022.
- ^ "Dr. S. (Simone) Kerseboom". Parlement.com (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 October 2022.
- ^ a b "Benoeming Dekker tot Tweede Kamerlid" [Appointment Dekker as member of the House of Representatives]. Kiesraad (Press release) (in Dutch). 8 December 2022. Retrieved 29 January 2023.
- ^ a b Goossen, Hans (6 December 2022). "Simone Kerseboom: als Kamerlid met ziekteverlof, als Statenlid niet" [Simone Kerseboom: On maternity leave as House member, not as States Provincial member]. De Limburger (in Dutch). Retrieved 29 January 2023.
- ^ "Proces-verbaal uitslag verkiezing Provinciale Staten Limburg 2023" [Records election results States of Limburg 2023] (PDF). Kiesraad (in Dutch). 27 March 2023. Retrieved 8 April 2023.
- ^ Goossen, Hans (24 March 2023). "Simone Kerseboom (FvD) uit Maastricht keert terug als Tweede Kamerlid" [Simone Kerseboom (FvD) from Maastricht returns as House member]. De Limburger (in Dutch). Retrieved 8 April 2023.
- ^ "Proces-verbaal uitslag Eerste Kamerverkiezing 2023" [Records of the results of the 2023 Senate election] (PDF). Dutch Electoral Council (in Dutch). 1 June 2023. pp. 10–12. Retrieved 20 August 2023.
- ^ Goossen, Hans (14 September 2023). "Simone Kerseboom uit Maastricht zwaait af als Kamerlid van Forum voor Democratie, wel nog lijstduwer" [Simone Kerseboom from Maastricht leaves the House of Representatives on behalf of Forum for Democracy, will be lijstduwer]. De Limburger (in Dutch).
- ^ "Proces-verbaal verkiezingsuitslag Tweede Kamer 2021" [Report of the election results House of Representatives 2021] (PDF). Dutch Electoral Council (in Dutch). 29 March 2021. pp. 145–146. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
- ^ "Proces-verbaal van de uitslag van de verkiezing van de Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal 2023 d.d. 4 december 2023" [Report of the results of the election of the House of Representatives on 4 December 2023] (PDF). Dutch Electoral Council (in Dutch). 4 December 2023. pp. 47–104, 213. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
External links
- Simone Kerseboom, Houseofrepresentatives.nl