Alexander De Croo
Encyclopedia
Alexander De Croo is a Flemish
liberal
politician, economist and businessman. He was elected chairman of his political party (Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats (Open VLD)) on 12 December 2009.
. In 1998, he graduated in Business Engineering at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel
. He attended Northwestern University
in Chicago
in 2002 to complete an MBA at the Kellogg School of Management
.
Before his political career, Alexander De Croo became a project leader of The Boston Consulting Group
in 1999. Starting from 2006, he founded a new company called Darts-ip specialized in providing service to Intellectual Property professionals.
In 2009, he participated for the first time in politics with the European elections of 2009. He received 47.779 preference votes while being positioned tenth on the party ballot.
. He chose Vincent Van Quickenborne
and Patricia Ceysens
as his running mates to compete against Marino Keulen
and Gwendolyn Rutten. On 12 December 2009, he was elected president in the second round with 11.676 votes. Marino Keulen received 9.614 votes. His election is remarkable because he does not have any previous experience practicing a political mandate.
Flanders
Flanders is the community of the Flemings but also one of the institutions in Belgium, and a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France and the Netherlands. "Flanders" can also refer to the northern part of Belgium that contains Brussels, Bruges, Ghent and Antwerp...
liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
politician, economist and businessman. He was elected chairman of his political party (Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats (Open VLD)) on 12 December 2009.
Biography
Alexander De Croo is the son of former Belgian minister and president of the Chamber of Representatives Herman De CrooHerman De Croo
Herman Francies Joseph De Croo is a Belgian liberal politician. He is a member of the Open VLD. He is the father of current Open VLD chairman Alexander De Croo....
. In 1998, he graduated in Business Engineering at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel
Vrije Universiteit Brussel
The Vrije Universiteit Brussel is a Flemish university located in Brussels, Belgium. It has two campuses referred to as Etterbeek and Jette.The university's name is sometimes abbreviated by "VUB" or translated to "Free University of Brussels"...
. He attended Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
in 2002 to complete an MBA at the Kellogg School of Management
Kellogg School of Management
The Kellogg School of Management is the business school of Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, downtown Chicago, Illinois and Miami, Florida. Kellogg offers full-time, part-time, and executive programs, as well as partnering programs with schools in China, India, Hong Kong, Israel,...
.
Before his political career, Alexander De Croo became a project leader of The Boston Consulting Group
Boston Consulting Group
The Boston Consulting Group is a global management consulting firm with offices in 42 countries. It is recognized as one of the most prestigious management consulting firms in the world. It is one of only three companies to appear in the top 15 of Fortunes "Best Companies to Work For" report for...
in 1999. Starting from 2006, he founded a new company called Darts-ip specialized in providing service to Intellectual Property professionals.
In 2009, he participated for the first time in politics with the European elections of 2009. He received 47.779 preference votes while being positioned tenth on the party ballot.
Chairman of Open VLD
On 26 October 2009, he became a candidate for the presidency of his political party Open VLD to succeed the transitional president Guy VerhofstadtGuy Verhofstadt
Guy Verhofstadt is a Belgian politician who was the 47th Prime Minister of Belgium from 1999 to 2008. He is currently a Member of the European Parliament and leader of the Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe.- Early career :...
. He chose Vincent Van Quickenborne
Vincent Van Quickenborne
Vincent Paul Marie Van Quickenborne is a Belgian politician, as a member of the Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats party....
and Patricia Ceysens
Patricia Ceysens
Patricia Ceysens is a Flemish politician and member of the Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats party, being the vice-chairman of the party. She served in the Flemish Government of 2004-2009 as Minister of Economy, Enterprise, Science, Innovation and Foreign Trade...
as his running mates to compete against Marino Keulen
Marino Keulen
Marino Ghislainus Keulen is a Flemish politician and member of the Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats party. He is a representative in the Flemish Parliament, and served in the Flemish Government of 2004-2009 as Minister of Home Affairs, Urban Policy, Housing and Civic Integration...
and Gwendolyn Rutten. On 12 December 2009, he was elected president in the second round with 11.676 votes. Marino Keulen received 9.614 votes. His election is remarkable because he does not have any previous experience practicing a political mandate.