VVD parliamentarian Roelien Kamminga selected to be new mayor of Groningen
Roelien Kamminga will be the new mayor of Groningen. The 46-year-old Groningen-born woman is currently a parliamentarian for the VVD. The confidential committee in charge of selecting the mayor is very pleased with their choice, Jeffry van Hoorn (GroenLinks) told RTV Noord, saying that Kamminga will “fight like a lion” for the city of Groningen.
“We wanted the best mayor for Groningen, the best mayor in the Netherlands, who fights like a lion for Groningen. Champions League because the people of Groningen deserve it,” Van Hoorn said. “We succeeded. We are going to nominate a mayor with a love for Groningen and a heart for the region.”
Kamminga has been in the Tweede Kamer, the lower house of the Dutch parliament, for the VVD since March 2021. Before that, she worked at the Ministry of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations as the program director on Groningen Versterken en Perspectief - the department involved in the problems surrounding gas extraction in the province and the resulting earthquakes.
Kamminga is taking over from Mirjam van ‘t Veld (CDA), who stepped in as interim mayor after Koen Schuiling (VVD) resigned.
Schuiling said he resigned because he “no longer had the energy” for the office. It later became apparent that Home Affairs Minister Judith Uitermark pressured him to resign after he was convicted of masturbating behind the wheel of a moving car. Schuiling has appealed against the conviction.
