Judith Uitermark

• Politician
• judge

Judith Uitermark
Uitermark in 2024
Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations
Incumbent
Assumed office 2 July 2024

Judith Johanna Marianne Uitermark (born 20 September 1971) is a Dutch judge and politician of the Christian democratic New Social Contract (NSC) party. ^[1] Since 2 July 2024 Uitermark has served as minister of the interior and kingdom relations in the Schoof cabinet.

Early life and career

Uitermark was born on 20 September 1971 in Edam in North Holland. ^[2] She attended secondary education in Breda from 1983 until 1988, graduating with a havo diploma, and she studied business administration and economics at a Haarlem vocational university. She went to the University of Amsterdam in 1993 to study law and public administration. Uitermark started assisting the parliamentary group of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) in the Haarlem Municipal Council alongside in 1995, and she became a councilor herself in 1998. ^[3]

Upon finishing her studies, Uitermark became a judicial trainee at the Utrecht district court in April 2001, and she stepped down from the municipal council. She continued her career within the judiciary, finally becoming a senior judge at the North Holland district court. ^[3] A proponent of mediation between perpetrators and victims, Uitermark became involved in a national pilot project around two years after it had started in 2010. She served as National Coordinator for Mediation in Criminal Cases between 2015 and 2022. ^{[3] [4]}

New Social Contract

She met Pieter Omtzigt, who had just founded New Social Contract, in September 2023, and she switched her party affiliation to become the party's third candidate in the November 2023 general election. Uitermark received a seat in the House of Representatives, and her focus was on justice and security. ^{[2] [5] [6]} She aimed to make the government a more compassionate and reliable actor, and she cited her dissatisfaction with "toxic politics" as one of her reasons to become politically active. ^[7]

After the PVV, VVD, NSC, and BBB formed the Schoof cabinet, Uitermark was sworn in as Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations on 2 July 2024. ^{[4] [8]} The coalition agreement included proposals for two constitutional amendments, namely for the introduction of a constitutional court and for the abolition of a ban on constitutional review. Given that NSC campaigned on proper governance and the election-winning PVV had previously proposed measures conflicting with the rule of law, de Volkskrant described Uitermark as the cabinet's guardian of the Constitution. ^[3]

Uitermark continued a proposed revision of the Burial and Cremation Act initiated by her predecessor, which would legalize water cremation and expedite burials within 24 hours, in accordance with certain religious practices. ^[9]

Personal life

Uitermark met her husband Coşkun Çörüz while living in Haarlem. They both served simultaneously on its municipal council, and Çörüz was a member of parliament for the CDA between 2001 and 2012. ^[3]

Electoral history

Electoral history of Judith Uitermark

Year	Body	Party		Pos.	Votes	Result		Ref.
						Party seats	Individual
2023	House of Representatives		New Social Contract	3	10,895	20	Won	[10]

References

1. "Judith Uitermark". Nieuw Sociaal Contract (in Dutch). Retrieved 22 June 2024.
2. Derix, Steven; Van den Dool, Pim; Stokmans, Derk; Vermeer, Oscar; Klumpenaar, Sjoerd; König, Eppo; Pelgrim, Christiaan; Bouwman, Boris (13 June 2024). "Van diplomaat tot Boer zoekt Vrouw-kandidaat: dit zijn de beoogde ministers van het kabinet-Schoof" [From diplomat to Farmer Wants Wife contender: These are the ministers-designate of the Schoof cabinet]. NRC (in Dutch). Retrieved 18 June 2024.
3. Meijer, Remco (9 October 2024). "Eerste grote optreden Uitermark: hoe stevig staat zij als nieuwe minister in haar schoenen?" [First major appearance of Uitermark: How firm is the ground she is standing on?]. de Volkskrant (in Dutch). Retrieved 19 October 2024.
4. "Judith Uitermark (NSC) van mediation naar ministerschap" [Judith Uitermark (NSC) from mediation to minister]. NOS (in Dutch). 13 June 2024. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
5. "Mr. J.J.M. (Judith) Uitermark". www.parlement.com (in Dutch). Retrieved 21 December 2023.
6. "Woordvoerderschappen Nieuw Sociaal Contract" [New Social Contract spokespersonships](PDF). New Social Contract (in Dutch). Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 January 2024 – via Wayback Machine.
7. Keultjes, Hanneke; Verweij, Elodie (9 September 2024). "Wat de politiek van de rechtstaat kan leren: interview met oud-rechter en nu NSC minister Uitermark" [What politics can learn from the rule of law: Interview with former judge and current NSC Minister Uitermark]. Algemeen Dagblad (Interview) (in Dutch). Retrieved 16 September 2024.
8. "Ministers en staatssecretarissen kabinet-Schoof beëdigd" [Ministers and state secretaries of Schoof cabinet sworn in]. NOS (in Dutch). 2 July 2024. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
9. "Oplossen van een lichaam als alternatief voor begraven stap dichterbij" [Dissolving a body as an alternative to a burial one step closer]. NOS (in Dutch). 8 October 2024. Retrieved 8 October 2024.
10. "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. 185–186. Retrieved 21 December 2023.

See also

• List of female interior ministers

Political offices
Preceded by Hugo de Jonge	Minister of the Interior and Kingdom Relations 2024–present	Incumbent