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Malik Azmani

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Malik Azmani
Azmani in 2019
First Vice-President of Renew Europe
In office
2 July 2019 – 15 July 2024
President
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byBilly Kelleher
Member of the European Parliament
Incumbent
Assumed office
2 July 2019
ConstituencyNetherlands
Member of the House of Representatives
In office
17 June 2010 – 7 June 2019
Personal details
Born (1976-01-20) 20 January 1976 (age 48)
Heerenveen, Netherlands
Political party Dutch:
People's Party for Freedom and Democracy
 EU:
Renew Europe
ResidenceDalfsen
Alma materUniversity of Groningen

Malik Azmani (born 20 January 1976) is a Dutch politician and former lawyer and civil servant. A member of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD), which he led in the 2019 European Parliament election, he has served as a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) since then. Azmani was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2010.

Early life and career

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A native of Heerenveen, Azmani is of Moroccan descent through his father and of Frisian descent through his mother. Before making a career at the Immigration and Naturalisation Service (IND), he studied law at the University of Groningen.

Political career

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Career in national politics, 2010–2019

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As a member of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy, Azmani was a member of the House of Representatives from 2010 until 2019. He was also a member of the municipal council of Ommen from 2010 until 2014. In his political work, he primarily focused on migration and asylum, human trafficking and prostitution, as well as the Intelligence and Security Services Act (Wiv). Furthermore, from 2014 until August 2018, Azmani chaired the Committee on European Affairs in the House of Representatives.

In addition to his role in parliament, Azmani served as member of the Dutch delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe from 2013 until 2016.[1]

Member of the European Parliament, 2019–present

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In October 2018, Azmani was (unopposed) elected as the official leading candidate for the VVD in the European Parliament elections.

Following the elections, Azmani was part of a cross-party working group in charge of drafting the European Parliament's four-year work program on rule of law, borders and migration.[2]

In parliament, Azmani has since been serving as deputy chairman of the Renew Europe group, initially under the leadership of chairman Dacian Cioloș.[3] He is also a member of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs and a substitute member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs. In 2021, he joined the parliament's working group on Frontex, led by Roberta Metsola.[4] Since 2021, Azmani has been part of the Parliament's delegation to the Conference on the Future of Europe.[5]

In addition to his committee assignments, Azmani is part of the Parliament's delegations for relations with the Maghreb countries and the Arab Maghreb Union as well as to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean. He is also a member of the European Parliament Intergroup on LGBT Rights.[6]

As deputy leader of Renew Europe, Azmani took over leadership of the group for two weeks in January 2024 when Stéphane Séjourné stepped down from the European Parliament to serve as Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs in France.[7] Azmani decided to not apply for the permanent chairmanship. Newspaper Trouw reported that his potential candidacy was controversial due to the VVD's willingness to negotiate with the right-wing populist Party for Freedom as part of the 2023–2024 cabinet formation.[8] He was re-elected in June 2024 as the VVD's lead candidate, when the party won four seats.[9] Azmani was succeeded as deputy leader by Billy Kelleher, but he remained part of Renew Europe's bureau.[10] He has also served as vice president of the ALDE Party, and his focus in the parliament is on justice, security, migration, and foreign affairs.[11][12]

Electoral history

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Electoral history of Malik Azmani
Year Body Party Pos. Votes Result Ref.
Party seats Individual
2024 European Parliament VVD 1 351,733 4 Won [9]

References

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  1. ^ Malik Azmani Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, assembly.coe.int. Accessed 29 June 2023.
  2. ^ Florian Eder (13 June 2019), POLITICO Brussels Playbook, presented by Google: Madrid’s moment — Parliament working groups sneak peak[sic — Happy birthday, GDPR] Politico Europe. Accessed 29 June 2023.
  3. ^ Mehreen Khan (18 June 2019), "_Romanian Macron' favourite to lead new EU force" Financial Times. Accessed 29 June 2023.
  4. ^ Mia Bartoloni (26 February 2021), Movers and Shakers The Parliament Magazine.
  5. ^ Members of the delegation to the Conference on the Future of Europe, europarl.europa.eu. Accessed 29 June 2023.
  6. ^ Members European Parliament Intergroup on LGBTI Rights.
  7. ^ "VVD'er Azmani voorlopig leider Europese liberalen" [VVD member Azmani acting leader European liberals]. BNR Nieuwsradio (in Dutch). 11 January 2024. Retrieved 14 January 2024.
  8. ^ Abels, Romana (24 January 2024). "Malik Azmani (VVD) definitief geen voorzitter EU-liberalen wegens onvrede over coalitiegesprekken" [Malik Azmani (VVD) definitively not chair of the EU liberals due to dissatisfaction about coalition talks]. Trouw (in Dutch). Retrieved 24 January 2024.
  9. ^ a b "Proces-verbaal centraal stembureau uitslag verkiezing Europees Parlement Model P22-1" [Central electoral council report of the results of the election of the European Parliament Model P22-1] (PDF). Dutch Electoral Council (in Dutch). 19 June 2024. pp. 13–14, 37. Retrieved 19 June 2024.
  10. ^ "Group structure". Renew Europe. Retrieved 28 September 2024.
  11. ^ "ALDE Governance". ALDE Party. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  12. ^ "Onze mensen" [Our people]. VVD Europa (in Dutch). Retrieved 16 November 2024.

Sources

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  • (in Dutch) Biography, parlement.com. Accessed 29 June 2023.
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