Raymond Johansen

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Raymond Johansen
Raymond Johansen.jpg
Johansen in 2009.
7th Governing Mayor of Oslo
Assumed office
21 October 2015
Preceded byStian Berger Røsland
Labour Party Secretary
In office
18 April 2009 – 18 April 2015
LeaderJens Stoltenberg
Jonas Gahr Støre
Preceded byMartin Kolberg
Succeeded byKjersti Stenseng
Oslo City Commissioner for Transport and the Environment
In office
1 January 1992 – 25 October 1995
Governing MayorRune Gerhardsen
Preceded byMerete Johnsen
Succeeded bySteinar Saghaug
Personal details
Born (1961-02-14) 14 February 1961 (age 60)
Oslo, Norway
NationalityNorwegian
Political partyLabour
Socialist Left (formerly)
Spouse(s)Christin Kristoffersen (m. 2017)
Children2

Raymond Johansen (born 14 February 1961) is a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party who has been Governing Mayor of Oslo since 2015.

Early life and education[]

Johansen was born in Oslo and was a plumber by trade.

Career[]

Early career[]

Originally a member of the Socialist Left Party, he chaired their youth wing Socialist Youth from 1986 to 1988 and was a member of the central party board from 1986 to 1991. He chaired the local party chapter in Oslo from 1990 to 1991, and was city commissioner (byråd) of the environment and transport in the city government of Oslo from 1991 to 1995.[1] He was not re-elected in 1995, and left the Socialist Left Party.

He then worked in the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation from 1996 to 2000 and was secretary general of the Norwegian Refugee Council from 2002 to 2005. In 2002 he briefly worked at the Norwegian embassy in Asmara. During the first and second cabinet Stoltenberg he was State Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.[1]

On 18 March 2007, Johansen met with members of the newly elected Hamas unity government and announced that Norway would resume economic aid. He also expressed hope that other European states would follow their lead.[citation needed]

Labour Party Secretary[]

On 21 April 2009 he was elected as Party Secretary of the Labour Party on its national convention, following the footsteps of his uncle, Thorbjørn Berntsen. The position is traditionally both powerful and influential. He was sometimes mentioned in party circles as a possible candidate to succeed party leader Jens Stoltenberg, but did noir forward his candidacy and Stoltenberg was subsequently succeeded by Jonas Gahr Støre.[2]

Governing Mayor of Oslo[]

Following the 2015 local elections he became governing mayor of Oslo, leading a coalition with the Socialist Left Party and the Green Party.

On 30 April 2018, Johansen took part in a Dagsrevyen debate with the Minister of Justice, Tor Mikkel Wara, regarding immigration in Oslo. Wara notably blamed gang criminality on the increase of immigration in the capital. Wara further added that gang issues was attributed to ethnic and cultural issues, and that it was the reason for why it was important to stop immigration in Oslo. Johansen defended the city’s handling of immigration, citing increase in borough spending and the strengthening of kindergartens and better opportunities to learn Norwegian.[3]

Johansen was re-elected following the 2019 local elections, and presented his new city commissioners on 23 October.[4]

In June 2021, following a motion of no confidence against City Commissioner for Transport and the Environment Lan Marie Berg, Johansen put forward the cabinet question in Oslo’s city council, which was supported by the opposition parties. He expressed that he wanted to continue a coalition with the Socialist Left and Green Party should he continue to lead the council cabinet.[5]

On 21 June, mayor of Oslo Marianne Borgen gave Johansen the green light to form a new city council cabinet, after the opposition, lead by the Conservative Party, failed to seek enough support for a Conservative led cabinet.[6] Johansen presented his second cabinet on 24 June, with the only change being who succeeded Lan Marie Berg as commissioner for transport and the environment.[7]

Personal life[]

He is married to Christin Kristoffersen and have two children,[1] and resides in Oslo.[citation needed] From 1999 to 2001 he was a member of the board of Vålerenga Fotball.[1]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c d "Statssekretær Raymond Johansen" (in Norwegian). Government.no. Retrieved 24 February 2009.
  2. ^ Haugan, Bjørn; Ertesvåg, Frank; Gillesvik, Kjetil (19 April 2012). "- Tschudi-saken har svekket Støres ledersjanser" [- The Tschudi affair has weakened Støre's leadership chances]. VG (in Norwegian). Retrieved 19 April 2012.
  3. ^ "Wara: -Oslo tåler ikke mer innvandring" (in Norwegian). NRK. 30 April 2018. Retrieved 13 April 2021.
  4. ^ "Her er det nye byrådet i Oslo: MDG får finansbyråden" (in Norwegian). Aftenposten. 23 October 2019. Retrieved 28 June 2021.
  5. ^ "Byrådet i Oslo går av etter mistillit mot MDG-Berg" (in Norwegian). VG. 16 June 2021. Retrieved 16 June 2021.
  6. ^ "Klart for nytt Ap-ledet byråd i Oslo" (in Norwegian). ABC Nyheter. 21 June 2021. Retrieved 23 June 2021.
  7. ^ "Dette er det nye byrådet i Oslo" (in Norwegian). NRK. 24 June 2021. Retrieved 24 June 2021.
Political offices
Preceded by
Oslo City Commissioner of Transport and the Environment
1992–1995
Succeeded by
Party political offices
Preceded by
Kristin Halvorsen
Leader of the Socialist Youth
1986–1988
Succeeded by
Paul Chaffey
Preceded by
Martin Kolberg
Party Secretary of the Labour Party
2009–2015
Succeeded by
Kjersti Stenseng
Preceded by
Stian Berger Røsland
Governing mayor of Oslo
2015–
Succeeded by
Incumbent


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