In the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

, the municipal executive (, oftentimes abbreviated to ; ) is the executive board of a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

. It plays a central role in

municipal politics in the Netherlands Municipal politics in the Netherlands is an important aspect of the politics of the Netherlands. The municipality is the lowest level of government, but this does not reflect the importance that the Amsterdam and Rotterdam governments play in Du ...

, similar to the communal college in Belgium. It consists of the

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

and the members of the municipal executive (

aldermen An alderman is a member of a municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law with similar officials existing in the Netherlands (wethouder) and Belgium (schepen). The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking membe ...

Composition

Mayor

The mayor (, sometimes translated as '

burgomaster Burgomaster (alternatively spelled burgermeister, ) is the English form of various terms in or derived from Germanic languages for the chief magistrate or executive of a city or town. The name in English was derived from the Dutch . In so ...

') is the chairperson of the municipal executive, and therefore holds the

casting vote A casting vote is a vote that someone may exercise to resolve a tied vote in a deliberative body. A casting vote is typically by the presiding officer of a council, legislative body, committee, etc., and may only be exercised to break a deadlock ...

in the event of a tie. Their role is comparable to the roles of the

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

in the cabinet, the

King's Commissioner A King's commissioner (, ''CvdK'') is the head of government and legislature in a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands. When the List of monarchs of the Netherlands, reigning monarch is a woman, the title is Queen's commission ...

in the provincial executives, and the

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

in the executive councils of the

Caribbean Netherlands The Caribbean Netherlands (, ) is a geographic region of the Netherlands located outside of Europe, in the Caribbean, consisting of three special municipalities. These are the islands of Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba (island), Saba,"Bonair ...

. The mayor is appointed by the

monarch A monarch () is a head of stateWebster's II New College Dictionary. "Monarch". Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. Life tenure, for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest ...

(''de facto'' by the

Minister of the Interior An interior minister (sometimes called a minister of internal affairs or minister of home affairs) is a cabinet official position that is responsible for internal affairs, such as public security, civil registration and identification, emergency ...

) for a renewable six-year term. Like the aldermen, the mayor has a portfolio, which always includes public order and safety. Most mayors are members of a

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology, ...

, but they are expected to carry out their tasks in a

non-partisan Nonpartisanship, also known as nonpartisanism, is a lack of affiliation with a political party and a lack of political bias. While an ''Oxford English Dictionary'' definition of ''partisan'' includes adherents of a party, cause, person, etc., ...

manner.

Aldermen

The aldermen (also alderwomen or alderpersons; ) are the board members of the municipal executive. Their role is comparable to the roles of the ministers in the cabinet and the deputies in the provincial executives. Other common translations include deputy mayors, vice mayors and portfolio holders, although the former titles may be reserved for aldermen who are empowered to act for the mayor in their absence (). After every municipal election, the aldermen are elected to the municipal executive by the members of the

municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough cou ...

. Usually, they elect sitting members of the municipal council, but it is also possible to nominate people from outside the council. Unlike aldermen in English-speaking countries, ''wethouders'' cannot simultaneously be members of the municipal council. Therefore, municipal councillors must resign their seats when they are elected into the office of alderman. The municipal council also holds the power to remove an alderman from office by means of a

motion of no confidence A motion or vote of no confidence (or the inverse, a motion or vote of confidence) is a motion and corresponding vote thereon in a deliberative assembly (usually a legislative body) as to whether an officer (typically an executive) is deemed fi ...

. The aldermen are assigned portfolios within the municipal executive and, in this capacity, prepare, coordinate, and plan policy and legislation for the council as a whole. They are also charged with the day-to-day government of the municipality and the implementation of legislation. The aldermen report to the municipal council on all aspects of what is happening within their portfolios. The municipal executive functions as a committee that reaches decisions by way of consensus.

Quota

According to the Municipality Act (), the number of aldermen cannot exceed 20% of the number of members of the municipal council, but there must be at least two. In Dutch municipalities with 18,000 inhabitants or less, the office of alderman is a part-time position. In larger municipalities, the office is a full-time position, but the municipal council may opt to designate one or more portfolios as part-time positions, in which case the maximum number of aldermen is 25% of the number of municipal councillors.

Municipal secretary

The municipal secretary (), who is chosen by the municipal executive, is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the municipal executive and assists with administrative matters.

Party politics

Political parties A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...

play an active role in municipal politics in the Netherlands. The party with the most members on the municipal council is considered to be in control of the municipal government. Usually, none of the parties wins an absolute majority, so coalitions have to be formed. Since the council members vote for the members of the municipal executive, the municipal executive is also chosen along party lines. As a result, two different types of municipal executives exist: * A "manifesto-based executive" (''programmacollege'') is elected on the basis of a

manifesto A manifesto is a written declaration of the intentions, motives, or views of the issuer, be it an individual, group, political party, or government. A manifesto can accept a previously published opinion or public consensus, but many prominent ...

by a majority vote of all members of the municipal council. Most municipal executives in the Netherlands are manifesto-based. * A "mirror executive" (''afspiegelingscollege'') is an executive whose composition reflects the distribution of the major parties in the municipal council. For example, if the members of the municipal council are evenly split between three mainstream parties, the members of the executive board will also be evenly split between these three parties.

Alliances

Municipal councillors sometimes form party-based coalitions and vote in blocs to prevent members of opposing political parties from joining the executive board. This means that a party that does well in the municipal election may not be represented in the municipal executive. For example, from 2002 to 2006, the municipal executive of

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , ; ; ) is the second-largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city in the Netherlands after the national capital of Amsterdam. It is in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, part of the North S ...

consisted of aldermen from right-wing parties ( CDA, VVD and Leefbaar Rotterdam), while the Labour Party had been the second largest party in the municipal council. In

Groningen Groningen ( , ; ; or ) is the capital city and main municipality of Groningen (province), Groningen province in the Netherlands. Dubbed the "capital of the north", Groningen is the largest place as well as the economic and cultural centre of ...

, the left-wing parties (Labour Party,

Socialist Party Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of th ...

and

Groenlinks (, ; GL) is a Green politics, green List of political parties in the Netherlands, political party in the Netherlands. It was formed on 1 March 1989 from the merger of four Left-wing politics, left-wing parties: the Communist Party of the Neth ...

) kept members of right-wing parties out of the executive, despite a strong performance in the 2006 election.

Notes

References

{{Local government in the Netherlands Government of the Netherlands Dutch political institutions Local government in the Netherlands