Joost Eerdmans

Joost Eerdmans
Eerdmans in 2014
Leader of JA21
Incumbent
Assumed office 18 December 2020
Deputy	Annabel Nanninga
Parliamentary leader in the House of Representatives
Incumbent
Assumed office 31 March 2021
Parliamentary group	JA21
In office 25 September 2006 – 30 November 2006
Parliamentary group	Independent
Member of the House of Representatives
Incumbent
Assumed office 31 March 2021
Parliamentary group	JA21
In office 23 May 2002 – 30 November 2006
Parliamentary group	Pim Fortuyn List (2002–2004) Independent (2004–2006)
Personal details
Born	Bernard Johannes Eerdmans (1971-01-09) 9 January 1971 (age 50) Harderwijk, Netherlands
Nationality	Dutch
Political party	JA21 (since 2020)
Other political affiliations	Christian Democratic Appeal (until 2002) Pim Fortuyn List (2002–2004) Independent (2004–2006) One NL (2006) Forum for Democracy (2020)
Residence	Rotterdam
Alma mater	Erasmus University Rotterdam (MPA) Indiana University (MPA)
Occupation	Politician Civil servant Management consultant Political consultant Television presenter Television producer Radio presenter Political pundit Columnist Author

Bernard Johannes "Joost" Eerdmans (born 9 January 1971) is a Dutch politician and co-founder and Leader of JA21 since 18 December 2020. He was elected after the 2021 general election taking office on 31 March 2021. He had previously served as a member of the House of Representatives from 23 May 2002 until 30 November 2006 for the Pim Fortuyn List (LPF) and as a Independent.

Early life[]

Bernard Johannes Eerdmans was born on 9 January 1971 in Harderwijk in the province of Gelderland in a Reformed family. He graduated at the Christelijk College Nassau-Veluwe. After that, Eerdmans studied Management Science at the Erasmus Universiteit in Rotterdam. In 1995 he received his master's degree, having undertaken postgraduate studies at the Public administration School for Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University in Bloomington, Indiana in 1993.

Politics[]

Political career[]

After working for some time on projects for the Christian Democratic Appeal, Eerdmans worked at the Ministry of Justice from 1997 until 1999. In 1999 he became secretary to Ivo Opstelten, the Mayor of Rotterdam.

Pim Fortuyn List[]

In 2002 Eerdmans contacted Pim Fortuyn, who at that time was busy assembling a list of candidates for his new political party, the Pim Fortuyn List (LPF). Eerdmans was placed nineteenth on the list and after the 2002 election he became a member of the House of Representatives, while his party joined the First Balkenende cabinet.

After the fall of the cabinet, new elections were called. This time the LPF won only eight seats, but since Eerdmans was second on the list he remained in Parliament. He was removed from the party's parliamentary faction after it was definitively announced that Eerdmans would be on the One NL candidate list for the 2006 election.

One NL[]

For the 2006 general election, Eerdmans split with the LPF to form a new political party called One NL with Marco Pastors of Leefbaar Rotterdam. After the dismal result of One NL in the 2006 election, Eerdmans left Dutch politics.

Leefbaar Rotterdam[]

Eerdmans was elected lijsttrekker of Leefbaar Rotterdam on 6 October 2013.^[1] In the local elections of 2014 Leefbaar Rotterdam became the biggest party in Rotterdam, meaning the party would get the chance to lead the formation of a new coalition. The party subsequently formed a coalition with the Democrats 66 (D66) and Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), in which Eerdmans became an alderman.^[2]

Forum for Democracy[]

For the 2021 general election, Eerdmans was to be fourth on the party list of Forum for Democracy (FvD) led by Thierry Baudet, but he quit the party soon after the announcement, in response to the party's handling of antisemitism, homophobia and racism scandals from other party members, before it could be effectuated.

JA21[]

After leaving the Forum for Democracy, Eerdmans founded a new political party JA21 (Right Answer 2021) with ex-FvD members which aims to compete in the 2021 general election. Eerdmans was appointed party leader and lijsttrekker of JA21. JA21 gained 3 seats in the parliament.

Career outside politics[]

Eerdmans was a television host on the Dutch channel Het Gesprek. He was also one of the hosts of the Dutch programme TROS Regelrecht.

References[]

External links[]

Official

• (in Dutch) Drs. B.J. (Joost) Eerdmans Parlement & Politiek

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Joost Eerdmans.