Kjersti Stenseng

Last updated
Tom Tvedt
​
(m. 2024)​
Kjersti Stenseng
Kjersti Stenseng (2017).jpeg
Stenseng at the Labour Party conference in 2017.
Minister of Labour and Social Inclusion
Incumbent
Assumed office
16 September 2025
Children2
Alma mater Nord-Trøndelag University College
Lillehammer University College
University of Oslo

Kjersti Stenseng (born 4 September 1974) is a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party currently serving as Minister of Labour and Social Inclusion since September 2025. She previously served as the Minister of Local Government and Regional Development from February to September 2025 and was the party secretary from 2015 to 2025.

Contents

Career

Education

She finished her secondary education at Vinstra Upper Secondary School in 1993. She minored in sociology and modern history at the Nord-Trøndelag University College and Lillehammer University College before studying political science and history at the University of Oslo.

She also took teacher's education and worked as a teacher in Kvam and Vinstra from 1997 to 1999. From 1999 to 2010 she worked in the Peer Gynt Festival, the last nine years as director, and from 2010 to 2011 she was the director of the Norwegian Festival of Literature. [1]

Local politics

She was elected to the municipal council of Sør-Fron Municipality from 2007 to 2011. She became leader in Oppland Labour Party in 2010 and also national board member, and was promoted to central board member in 2011. [1]

Government

She was an acting political adviser in the Ministry of Culture from January to August 2010, then acting political adviser again from June to October 2011. From November to December 2011 she was an acting State Secretary in the same ministry. From 1 January 2012 she was an acting political adviser again, then political adviser from March and State Secretary from May 2012 to 1 October 2013. [2] She also served as a deputy member of the Storting from Oppland between 2013 and 2017. [3]

Parliament

She was elected as a deputy representative to the Storting, Norway's parliament, from Oppland in 2013. As Rigmor Aasrud from Oppland was a member of the outgoing Stoltenberg's Second Cabinet, Stenseng met as a regular representative during the two weeks before the cabinet change. [3]

Party politics

At the 2015 party conference, she was elected party secretary. She has been re-elected at every convention since (2017, 2019, 2021 and 2023). [4]

Mere weeks before the 2023 party convention, former deputy leader and mayor of Tana Helga Pedersen was open to succeeding Stenseng as party secretary as part of a greater renewal of the party's leadership. This was despite the fact that Stenseng had previously announced that she would seek re-election. [5] On 30 April, Pedersen announced that she wouldn't stand as a candidate to succeed Stenseng, arguing that she didn't have sufficient support within the party. This marked the first time that Stenseng's position had been challenged. [6]

In mid-December 2024, she announced that she would not seek re-election as party secretary at the next party convention in April 2025. [7] Upon being appointed to government in February 2025, Mari Aaby West succeeded Stenseng as acting secretary. [8] West was in turn succeeded by Kari-Anne Opsal on a permanent basis following the party convention in April. [9]

Minister of Local Government

Following the Centre Party's withdrawal from government, she was appointed minister of local government on 4 February 2025. [10]

Tenure

A month into her tenure, Stenseng announced that the government would be making an action plan to preserve kvens language and culture based on the findings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Preliminarily she noted that it was uncertain when the plan would be finalised, but that the government was swiftly having discussions with kvens organisations about the matter. The plan received support from kvens organisations and the Sámi Parliament of Norway. [11]

Stenseng intervened in April to approve the extension of a new sewage treatment plant to be constructed in Kongsberg after the county governor had rejected the local authorities' go-ahead of the extension. Stenseng argued that it was important to get the extension in place in order to secure infrastructure in the uncertain times of global affairs. [12]

Stenseng announced in August that the government would seek to change parts of the building regulations, arguing that they had become "too rigid" and was "working against their purpose". Furthermore she said it would also be relevant for them to lift some regulations on noice and light input. [13]

In mid-September, she issued a letter to municipalities around the country with a list of demands with the aim of increasing housing regulations. She argued that it wasn't meant as criticism of local authorities, but rather an invitation for a joint effort. Furthermore, she argued that the government prioritised working with municipalities on the matter, with them well knowing what the government's expectations would be. [14]

Minister of Labour and Social Inclusion

She was appointed minister of labour and social inclusion in a minor cabinet reshuffle following the 2025 parliamentary election. [15]

Personal life

She has two daughters from a previous relationship. [16] She is married to former president of the Norwegian Confederation of Sports Tom Tvedt. [17] [18] [19]

References

  1. 1 2 "Tidligere statssekretær Kjersti Stenseng". Government.no (in Norwegian). 14 June 2011. Retrieved 6 October 2013.
  2. ↑ "Jens Stoltenberg's Second Government". Government.no . Retrieved 6 October 2013.
  3. 1 2 "Kjersti Stenseng" (in Norwegian). Storting . Retrieved 3 May 2023.
  4. ↑ "Her er Støres nye mannskap" (in Norwegian). NRK. 18 April 2015. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
  5. ↑ "Ap-sjokk: - Jeg stiller" (in Norwegian). Dagbladet. 20 April 2023. Retrieved 21 April 2023.
  6. ↑ "Helga Pedersen: – Jeg stiller ikke som kandidat til å bli partisekretær" (in Norwegian). NRK. 30 April 2023. Retrieved 30 April 2023.
  7. ↑ Rønning, Mats; Skårdalsmo, Kristian; Pessl-Kleiven, Eirik (15 December 2024). "Endringer i Ap-toppen: Partisekretæren går av" (in Norwegian Bokmål). NRK . Retrieved 15 December 2024.
  8. ↑ "Aaby West inn som partisekretær" (in Norwegian Bokmål). NRK. 4 February 2025. Retrieved 18 March 2025.
  9. ↑ Einangshaug, Henrik; Skurtveit, Sunniva (3 April 2025). "Kari-Anne ble historisk – valgt som ny partisekretær i Arbeiderpartiet" (in Norwegian Bokmål). NRK Troms og Finnmark. Retrieved 3 April 2025.
  10. ↑ Skårdalsmo, Kristian; Rønning, Mats; Tomter, Line; Hjetland, Geir Bjarte; Grasmo, Julie (4 February 2025). "Nye statsråder: Stenseng inn i regjering – Skjæran får toppjobb på Stortinget" (in Norwegian Bokmål). NRK . Retrieved 4 February 2025.
  11. ↑ Wingstad, Simen; Johansen, Eskild; Vaara, Tomi (14 March 2025). "Lager ny handlingsplan: – Mange sluttet delvis eller fullstendig å snakke kvensk" (in Norwegian Bokmål). NRK Kvensk. Retrieved 16 September 2025.
  12. ↑ Haraldsen, Stian; Bulie, Eivind; Rønhovde, Henning (3 April 2025). "Regjeringen griper inn og gir tillatelse i omstridt byggesak" (in Norwegian Bokmål). NRK Buskerud. Retrieved 4 April 2025.
  13. ↑ Blaker, Magnus (29 August 2025). "Regjeringen vil fjerne regler: Skal gjøre boligbygging billigere" (in Norwegian Bokmål). Nettavisen . Retrieved 2 September 2025.
  14. ↑ Aaser, Kristian (15 September 2025). "Regjeringen stiller krav til kommunene: – Ikke en pekefinger" (in Norwegian Bokmål). E24 Næringsliv . Retrieved 15 September 2025.
  15. ↑ Nerbøberg, Sunniva; Farestvedt, Ingrid Bjørndal; Myklebust, Bjørn; Nordby, Lars Thomas (16 September 2025). "Dette er endringene i regjeringen" (in Norwegian Bokmål). NRK . Retrieved 16 September 2025.
  16. ↑ "Bryllup: Verken Tom eller Kjersti husker det første kysset, men den første samtalen derimot..." Stavanger Aftenblad (in Norwegian Bokmål). 19 July 2024. Retrieved 19 July 2024.(subscription required)
  17. ↑ "- Det handler om å være kjærester og støtte hverandre som mennesker". Dagbladet (in Norwegian). 24 January 2018. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
  18. ↑ "Arbeiderpartiets partisekretær skal gifte seg med Tom Tvedt" (in Norwegian). Verdens Gang. 5 January 2024. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  19. ↑ "Kjersti Stenseng og Tom Tvedt har giftet seg". Verdens Gang (in Norwegian Bokmål). 17 August 2024. Retrieved 28 August 2024.
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