Thom van Campen
Member of the House of Representatives
Assumed office
31 March 2021
Member of the municipal council of Zwolle
In office
14 March 2011 – 19 April 2021
Preceded byRené de Heer
Succeeded bySharareh Azimi Nober
Personal details
Born
Anthony Albertus Hermance van Campen[1]

(1990-01-18) 18 January 1990
Doetinchem, Netherlands
Political partyPeople's Party for Freedom and Democracy
Alma mater

Anthony Albertus Hermance "Thom" van Campen (born 18 January 1990) is a Dutch politician who has served as a member of the House of Representatives since 2021. A member of the conservative-liberal People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD), he previously held a seat in the Zwolle municipal council (2011–2021) and worked as a political assistant.

Early life, education and career

Van Campen was born in 1990 in Doetinchem, a city in the Achterhoek, as the son of an education director and an entrepreneur. He has an older and a younger sister.[2] He attended the Doetinchem secondary school Ulenhofcollege at havo level between 2002 and 2007.[3] Van Campen studied journalism at the Windesheim University of Applied Sciences in Zwolle, graduating in 2012; he subsequently studied international relations (MSc) at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.[4] Back then, he also served as chief editor of the faculty magazine Essay.[2]

Van Campen became an intern of VVD member of the House of Representatives Malik Azmani in 2014 before he worked as the personal assistant of fellow party member Betty de Boer, whose specialisations in the House of Representatives included railways, between May 2015 and December 2016.[2] Thereafter, Van Campen started working as a strategic adviser at ProRail's public affairs department.[2][5] He left ProRail in October 2017 to take a job as political adviser of Tamara van Ark, State Secretary for Social Affairs and Employment.[5] Van Campen kept working for Van Ark when she became Minister for Medical Care in July 2020.[2]

Politics

Van Campen became a member of the VVD in 2008 and first appeared on the ballot, aged twenty, in the 2010 municipal elections as the VVD's seventh candidate in Zwolle.[6][7] He was not elected, but the VVD did appoint him to the position duoraadslid.[8] He succeeded VVD councilor René de Heer in March 2011, when he became an alderman, making Van Campen the youngest member of the Zwolle municipal council. He left his internship at the Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS) in Brussels after one month because of his appointment. Van Campen's specialization in the council was culture policy.[9]

He was re-elected in the 2014 municipal elections, in which he appeared fifth on the VVD's party list.[10] In 2016, a proposal by Van Campen and a D66 councilor passed the municipal council for an experiment that allowed bars in Zwolle to be open the entire night.[11] It eventually led to those rules becoming permanent in 2018.[12] Van Campen became the VVD's caucus leader in August 2016 and was re-elected as his party's lead candidate – the youngest in the Zwolle VVD's history – in the 2018 municipal elections.[6][13]

House of Representatives (2021–present)

Van Campen ran for member of parliament in the 2021 general election, being placed sixteenth on the VVD's party list. He received 2,821 preference votes and was sworn in as House member on 31 March.[14] Van Campen vacated his seat in the Zwolle municipal council the following month.[15] In the House, he is the VVD's spokesperson for agriculture, food quality, the Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA), reactive nitrogen, and health care prevention.[16] Van Campen is on the Benelux Parliament and on the House Committees for Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality; for Health, Welfare and Sport; and for Infrastructure and Water Management.[4]

Van Campen was one of the lijstduwers of the VVD in Zwolle in the 2022 municipal election.[17] In the House, he proposed that same year to force the permanent closing of slaughterhouses after multiple violations of animal welfare regulations.[18] As agricultural spokesperson, Van Campen was also involved in discussions about reactive nitrogen emissions, which the coalition consisting of the VVD had agreed to significantly reduce to improve the quality of nature reserves following a decision by the Council of State. During a party congress, members passed a motion with 51% of the vote to call on the VVD's House caucus to adjust cabinet plans to achieve these goals out of fear that they would harm the livability of rural areas. Van Campen had advised against the motion, disagreeing with its assumption that outdated techniques were being used to calculate emissions.[19] In June 2022, counter-terrorism unit NCTV recommended Van Campen and several other members of parliament to stay away from a farmers' protest in Stroe due to safety concerns. Van Campen subsequently criticized House members who did attend, saying that a unified reaction from politicians to these threats would have been more comradely.[20]

Van Campen serves as the VVD's vice caucus leader during the maternity leave of Bente Becker.[21]

Personal life

Van Campen lives in Zwolle and has a boyfriend.[2][4][22]

Electoral history

Electoral history of Thom van Campen
Year Body Party Pos. Votes Result Ref.
Party seats Individual
2021 House of Representatives People's Party for Freedom and Democracy 16 2,821 34 Won [23]
2023 House of Representatives People's Party for Freedom and Democracy 14 2,879 24 Won [24]

References

  1. ↑ "A.A.H. (Thom) van Campen MSc". Parlement.com (in Dutch). Retrieved 25 October 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Boschman, Jordy (27 February 2021). "VVD'er Van Campen vanuit Zwolle naar de Tweede Kamer, dat verrast eigenlijk niemand" [VVD member Van Campen from Zwolle to the House of Representatives to nobody's surprise]. De Stentor (in Dutch). Retrieved 16 April 2021.
  3. ↑ "Thom van Campen". Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal (in Dutch). Retrieved 16 April 2021.
  4. 1 2 3 "Thom van Campen". Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal. 31 March 2021. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
  5. 1 2 Heins, Arnoud (27 October 2017). "Van Campen laat Zwols geluid in Den Haag klinken" [Van Campen will make Zwolle's wishes known in The Hague]. De Stentor (in Dutch). p. 3.
  6. 1 2 Mollen, Janske (13 May 2017). "Thom van Campen is de jongste 'baas' ooit van de VVD in Zwolle" [Thom van Campen is the Zwolle VVD's youngest "boss" in its history]. De Stentor (in Dutch). p. 7.
  7. ↑ Wageman, Sander (1 February 2010). "Thom van Campen leest zich vast in" [Thom van Campen is already reading up]. De Stentor (in Dutch). p. 15.
  8. ↑ Van Drielen, Adri (1 April 2010). "Politiek draagt zestien burgerleden voor" [Parties nominate sixteen duoraadsleden]. De Stentor (in Dutch). p. 35.
  9. ↑ Wageman, Sander (12 March 2011). "Student (21) treedt toe tot raadsfractie VVD" [Student (21) enters VVD municipal caucus]. De Stentor (in Dutch).
  10. ↑ "VVD met veel 'oude bekenden' campagne in" [VVD enters campaign with many recognizable faces]. De Stentor (in Dutch). 22 November 2013.
  11. ↑ Boschman, Jordy (7 April 2017). "Initiatiefnemers blijven achter vrije horecatijden Zwolle staan" [Initiators keep supporting unrestricted closing times]. De Stentor (in Dutch). Retrieved 15 April 2021.
  12. ↑ Boschman, Jordy; Plat, Paulien (25 February 2022). "Nachthoreca in Zwolle wil langere nachtrust, proef met eerdere sluitingstijden: 'Mensen willen eerder naar huis'" [Zwolle nightlife sector wants a longer night's rest, pilot with earlier closing times: 'People want to return home earlier']. De Stentor (in Dutch). Retrieved 28 March 2022.
  13. ↑ "Thom van Campen (26) nieuwe leider VVD Zwolle" [Thom van Campen (26) new leader Zwolle VVD]. De Stentor (in Dutch). 6 August 2016. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
  14. ↑ "Uitslag Tweede Kamerverkiezing 17 maart 2021" [Results general election 17 March 2021] (PDF). Kiesraad (in Dutch). 26 March 2021. p. 185. Retrieved 16 April 2021.
  15. ↑ Boschman, Jordy (23 March 2021). "Johran Willegers nieuw kopstuk VVD Zwolle nu Van Campen naar Tweede Kamer vertrekt" [Johran Willegers new leader Zwolle VVD now that Van Campen leaves for the House of Representatives]. De Stentor (in Dutch). Retrieved 16 April 2021.
  16. ↑ "Thom van Campen". VVD (in Dutch). Retrieved 21 August 2022.
  17. ↑ Boschman, Jordy (14 March 2022). "Stemmen op de lijsttrekker in Zwolle? Er zijn veel meer bekende en opvallende kandidaten" [Voting for the lead candidate in Zwolle? There are many more well-known and interesting candidates]. De Stentor (in Dutch). Retrieved 28 March 2022.
  18. ↑ "VVD wil slachthuizen sneller sluiten na herhaald dierenleed" [VVD wants to close slaughterhouses more quickly after repeated animal suffering]. RTL Nieuws (in Dutch). 17 May 2022. Retrieved 4 June 2022.
  19. ↑ "VVD'ers zijn tegen stikstofplannen kabinet, minister past plannen niet aan" [VVD members oppose cabinet's nitrogen plans, minister will not change plans]. BNR Nieuwsradio (in Dutch). 11 June 2022. Retrieved 15 August 2022.
  20. ↑ "VVD-kamerlid Van Campen ergert zich aan politici die goede sier maken in Stroe: "Niet collegiaal"" [VVD House member Van Campen is annoyed by politicians who make good cheer in Stroe: "Not comradely"]. RTV Oost (in Dutch). 22 June 2022. Retrieved 15 August 2022.
  21. ↑ "Nieuw bestuur VVD-Tweede Kamerfractie vanwege verlofgangers" [New board VVD House of Representatives caucus due to leaves]. Parlement.com (in Dutch). 9 August 2022. Retrieved 20 August 2022.
  22. ↑ Van Campen, Thom (18 September 2022). "Kamerlid Van Campen (32) uit Zwolle 'promoveer' binnen VVD: 'Kerkhof ligt vol met opvolgers Rutte'" [House member Van Campen (32) from Zwolle is 'promoted' within the VVD: 'A cemetery is filled with successors of Rutte']. De Stentor (Interview) (in Dutch). Retrieved 25 October 2022.
  23. ↑ "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. 14–15. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
  24. ↑ "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. 15–16. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
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