Speaker of the House of Representatives (Netherlands)

Speaker of the House of Representatives
Speaker of the House of Representatives
Voorzitter van de Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal
	Coat of arms of the House of Representatives
	Incumbent; Martin Bosma ; since 14 December 2023
Style	Mister Speaker (informal); His Excellency (diplomatic)
Member of	Presidium of the House of Representatives
Term length	No term limit; until the end of the parliamentary term of the House of Representatives
Constituting instrument	Constitution of the Netherlands
Formation	21 September 1815;208 years ago
First holder	Jan Elias Nicolaas van Lynden van Hoevelaken
Deputy	Deputy Speakers
Salary	€126,975.48 annually; (including €7,887.24 expenses)
Website	www.houseofrepresentatives.nl/members-parliament/president-house

Last updated December 20, 2023

The speaker of the House of Representatives (Dutch : Voorzitter van de Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal) is one of the 150 members of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands, elected to lead the meetings of the House. The speaker also chairs the Chamber's Presidium and the Procedure Committee (Commissie van de Werkwijze). Prior to the 1982 constitutional revision, the speaker was appointed by the Crown.

Duties

As a member of the House of Representatives, the speaker has the same rights and obligations as other members. The speaker leads the meetings of the House. The officeholder opens and closes the meetings and determines who speaks. The members of the House, as well as Ministers and State Secretaries are not supposed to address each other directly, but always address the speaker instead, as a method to encourage civility. While the speaker also takes part in the voting (as a regular member of the House of Representatives), the officeholder typically does not participate in debates.

Besides leading the meetings, the speaker represents the House of Representatives as a whole, such as in ceremonies and with visits by foreign heads of state. The speaker is also the chair of the Presidium, which is responsible for determining the budget of the House, setting its agenda and appointing its staff.

The speaker is supported by deputy speakers, ranked by number in order of precedence, which also are members of the House. If the speaker is unable to fulfill their duties or the position becomes vacant, then the meeting is chaired by the first deputy speaker. The speaker has a seat with a backrest that is higher than the other seats in the House.

Election

The speaker is elected by the members of the House of Representatives. Such an election takes place shortly after a general election or after the position became vacant. The House adopts a profile that outlines the desired qualities that potential candidates should have, such as prior experience and personal traits. The profile is not binding, however. Members can submit their candidacy, but this is not required.^[1]

The election itself requires the participation of at least 76 members. To win the election, a Member needs to obtain an absolute majority of the votes cast (more than 50%). The voting takes place by open and secret ballot, which means that Members have to write down the name of the preferred Member themselves and that the vote is not disclosed. Members can choose between writing down the name of one of the candidates, the name of any other Member (whether they are standing or not), something invalid or nothing at all.^[1]

An election requires multiple voting rounds when no member wins an absolute majority. If there is no winner after two rounds, the rules of voting are different. In the third round, the list of members who were voted for in the second round is definitive. In addition, the number of eligible members is limited, depending on the number of members who received votes in the second round. If fewer than five members received votes then all members except the two frontrunners are eliminated from the election, otherwise only four frontrunners remain. In the fourth round, only the two frontrunners are eligible, any other votes are deemed invalid. If both members have the same number of votes, the election is decided by lot.^[1]

Members of the Presidium

Position	Name		Service in the Presidium	Service in the House of Representatives
Speaker	Martin Bosma (born 1964)	PVV	30 June 2010 (13 years, 265 days)	30 November 2006 (17 years, 20 days)
First Deputy Speaker	Tom van der Lee (born 1964)	GL/PvdA	14 June 2018 (5 years, 189 days)	23 March 2017 (6 years, 272 days)
Second Deputy Speaker	Roelien Kamminga (born 1978)	VVD	7 July 2021 (2 years, 166 days)	31 March 2021 (2 years, 264 days)
Third Deputy Speaker	Nicolien van Vroonhoven-Kok (born 1971)	NSC	19 December 2023 (1 day)	23 May 2002 - 12 May 2008, 18 August 2008 - 17 June 2010, 6 December 2023 (7 years, 308 days)
Fourth Deputy Speaker	Wieke Paulusma (born 1978)	D66	19 December 2023 (1 day)	15 April 2021 (2 years, 249 days)
Fifth Deputy Speaker	Henk Vermeer (born 1966)	BBB	19 December 2023 (1 day)	6 December 2023 (14 days)
Sixth Deputy Speaker	Gidi Markuszower (born 1977)	PVV	19 December 2023 (1 day)	21 March 2017 (6 years, 274 days)

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References

1 2 3 "Voorzitter Tweede Kamer - verkiezingen" [Speaker House of Representatives - elections]. Parlement & Politiek (in Dutch). Retrieved 13 February 2016.

External links

President of the House at the website of the House of Representatives

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[:0-1] 1 2 3 "Voorzitter Tweede Kamer - verkiezingen" [Speaker House of Representatives - elections]. Parlement & Politiek (in Dutch). Retrieved 13 February 2016.

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