New Amsterdam mayor sworn in today

Femke Halsema will be sworn in as mayor of Amsterdam on Thursday afternoon. Commissioner of the King Johan Remkes will swear her in during a special city council meeting, during which the council will also say goodbye to acting mayor Jozias van Aartsen. The ceremony can be watched live here from 5:00 p.m.

Halsema was nominated to be Amsterdam's new mayor on June 27th, though her name was already mentioned as a contender for the position in October - shortly after mayor Eberhard van der Laan's death. She is succeeding Van Aartsen, who took on the job as acting mayor in December.

Femke Halsema is the first female mayor of Amsterdam, and also the first GroenLinks mayor of the Dutch capital.