Alexander Kops
{{Short description|Dutch politician (born 1984)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2014}}
{{Infobox officeholder
|name = Alexander Kops
|image = Alexander-kops-1426067525.png
|alt =
|caption = Kops in 2015
|office1 = Member of the House of Representatives
|term_start1 = 23 March 2017
|office2 = Member of the Senate
|term_start2 = 8 July 2014
|term_end2 = 21 March 2017
|predecessor2= Marcel de Graaff
|successor2 = Peter van Dijk
|office3 = Member of the Provincial Council of Gelderland
|term_start3 = 26 March 2015
|term_end3 = 11 April 2017
|successor3 = Elmar Vlottes
|birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1984|11|23|df=y}}
|birth_place = Leidschendam, Netherlands
|death_date =
|death_place =
|party = Party for Freedom
|website =
|nationality = Dutch
|alma_mater = {{ubl|Leiden University|Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences}}
|children = 1
|occupation = {{hlist|Politician|political staffer|teacher}}
|}}
Alexander Kops ({{IPA|nl|aːlɛkˈsɑndər ˈkɔps|lang}}; born 23 November 1984) is a Dutch politician and former high school teacher. On behalf of the right-wing populist Party for Freedom (PVV), he served in the Senate from 2014 to 2017, and he has served in the House of Representatives since 2017.
Early life and career
Kops was born on 23 November 1984 in Leidschendam, and he later lived in Zoetermeer.{{Cite news |title = Duitse grammatica van een Nederlandse student |trans-title = German grammar by a Dutch student |date = 5 December 2003 |page = HGL1 |language = nl |newspaper = Haagsche Courant }} Aged 16, he wrote a book about German grammar that was printed by Wolters-Noordhoff in 2003. He also wrote novels and poems in his adolescence, some of which appeared in the magazine {{ill|De Brakke Hond|nl}}.{{Cite news |trans-title = The Senate, strange enough increasingly more powerful |newspaper = de Volkskrant |date = 27 May 2015 |pages = 2–3 |title = De senaat, gek genoeg steeds machtiger |language = nl }} He called Herman Gorter his inspiration, and his poetry collection titled Door maanlicht gewekt (Awoken by moonlight) was published in 2015.
Kops received his propaedeutic diploma in German language teaching from the Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences in 2004, and he subsequently studied German language and culture at Leiden University until 2009. He taught German at {{ill|Visser 't Hooft Lyceum|nl}} in Leiderdorp starting in 2008. His contract was not renewed after he was placed 27th on the PVV list in the March 2010 general election.{{cite web|url=http://www.parlement.com/id/vjkybkrveadl/a_alexander_kops |title=A. (Alexander) Kops |language=nl |publisher=Parlement.com |access-date=26 February 2025}}
Political career
In January 2011, Kops became a policy advisor of the PVV group in the European Parliament. He ran for the Senate in May 2011 as the party's 14th candidate, but he was not elected since the PVV won 10 seats.{{Cite web |url = https://www.kiesraad.nl/binaries/kiesraad/documenten/publicaties/2011/05/25/kerngegevens-eerste-kamer-2011/kerngegevens-eerste-kamerverkiezing-2011-0.pdf |website = Electoral Council |language = nl |access-date = 26 February 2025 |pages = 42–43 |title = Uitslag van de verkiezing van de leden van de Eerste Kamer van 23 mei 2011 |trans-title = Results of the 23 May 2011 election of the members of the Senate }} He was sworn into the Senate on 8 July 2014 to succeed Marcel de Graaff, who had been elected to the European Parliament.{{cite web|url=http://www.parlement.com/id/vjlah6w7yeho/nieuws/twee_nieuwe_senatoren_kops_pvv_en_meijer |title=Twee nieuwe senatoren: Kops (PVV) en Meijer (SP) |language=nl |publisher=Parlement.com |trans-title=Two new senators: Kops (PVV) and Meijer (SP) |date=8 July 2014 |access-date=8 August 2014}} He again occupied the 14th spot on the party list in the May 2015 Senate election. Despite the PVV securing nine seats, he was elected because he received more preference votes than any other candidate of his party.{{cite web|url=http://nos.nl/artikel/2038202-onverkiesbare-pvv-er-krijgt-meer-stemmen-dan-lijsttrekker.html |title='Onverkiesbare' PVV'er krijgt meer stemmen dan lijsttrekker |trans-title = 'Unelectable' VVD member receives more votes than lead candidate |language=nl |publisher=NOS |date=28 May 2015 |access-date=12 June 2015}} He was secretary of his parliamentary group from June 2015 until March 2017, and Kops also served on the Provincial Council of Gelderland from March 2015 until April 2017.
In the March 2017 general election, he was the PVV's 19th candidate. He was elected to the House of Representatives and resigned from the Senate, taking his seat on 23 March 2017. Kops was re-elected to the House in March 2021 and in November 2023. Since the latter election, he has served as the PVV's spokesperson for energy, climate, and medical ethics.{{Cite web |url = https://www.pvv.nl/tweede-kamerfractie.html |access-date = 17 November 2024 |language = nl |website = Party for Freedom |title = Tweede Kamerfractie |trans-title = House of Representatives group }}
Personal life
Electoral history
Notes
{{Notelist}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [https://www.houseofrepresentatives.nl/members_of_parliament/members_of_parliament/kops-pvv House of Representatives profile]
- [https://www.pvv.nl/tweede-kamerfractie/alexander-kops.html Party for Freedom profile] {{in lang|nl}}
{{Members of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands, 2023–present}}
{{Members of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands, 2021–2023}}
{{Members of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands, 2017–2021}}
{{Members of the Senate of the Netherlands, 2015–2019}}
{{Members of the Senate of the Netherlands, 2011–2015}}
{{authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kops, Alexander}}
Category:People from Zoetermeer
Category:21st-century Dutch educators
Category:Leiden University alumni
Category:Members of the Provincial Council of Gelderland
Category:Party for Freedom senators
Category:Dutch senators 2015–2019