Pieter Smit (11 October 1963 – 10 April 2018) was a Dutch police officer and politician, belonging to the

Democrats 66 Democrats 66 (; D66) is a social liberal and progressive political party in the Netherlands, which is positioned on the centre to centre-left of the political spectrum. It is a member of the Liberal International (LI) and the Alliance of Li ...

(D66) party. Smit was born in

Delfzijl Delfzijl (; ) is a city and former municipality (which now belongs to the municipality of Eemsdelta) with a population of 25,651 in the province of Groningen in the northeast of the Netherlands. Delfzijl was a sluice between the Delf and the Em ...

. He held a commanding position in the former Haaglanden police forceConcerning

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

and surrounding municipalities. before entering full-time into politics. He was elected into the municipal council of

Zoetermeer Zoetermeer () is a city in the Western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. The municipality covers an area of of which is water. A small village until the late 1960s, it had 6,392 inhabitants in 1950. By 2023 this had grown to 126.998 ...

in 1994 and became an alderman in 2006. From 1 September 2010 until his death in April 2018, he was mayor of Oldambt. He was the first non-acting mayor after the establishment of this new

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 ...

municipality on 1 January 2010. He also performed several ancillary functions, like commissioner of

Groningen Airport Eelde Groningen Airport Eelde is a minor international airport in the northeastern Netherlands. It is located near Eelde in the Province of Drenthe, south of the city of Groningen in the province of Groningen. In 2015, the airport handled 220,710 ...

. Pieter Smit died suddenly of a

cardiac arrest Cardiac arrest (also known as sudden cardiac arrest CA is when the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops beating. When the heart stops beating, blood cannot properly Circulatory system, circulate around the body and the blood flow to the ...

in his hometown

Scheemda Scheemda () is a village with a population of 5,085 in the municipality of Oldambt in the province of Groningen in the Netherlands. Scheemda was a separate municipality until 2010, when it merged with Reiderland and Winschoten to form the mun ...

, aged 54.

Naming

The '' Pieter Smit Bridge'' (a series of bridges) in the province of

are named after him.

References

In Memoriam: Pieter Smit (1963-2018)
OldambtNu, 12 April 2018

Dagblad van het Noorden The ''Dagblad van het Noorden'' (; ), abbreviated as ''DvhN'', is a Dutch regional daily newspaper that is published and circulated in the provinces of Groningen and Drenthe in the northeastern Netherlands. The newspaper is owned by Mediahuis. Er ...

, 10 April 2018
Burgemeester Pieter Smit van Oldambt door hartstilstand overleden
NOS, 10 April 2018 1963 births 2018 deaths 20th-century Dutch civil servants 20th-century Dutch politicians 21st-century Dutch civil servants 21st-century Dutch politicians Aldermen in South Holland Democrats 66 politicians Dutch police officers Mayors in Groningen (province) Municipal councillors in South Holland People from Delfzijl People from Oldambt (municipality) People from Zoetermeer {{Netherlands-bio-stub