# Sophie Hermans

Sophia Theodora Monique "Sophie" Hermans (born 1 May 1981) is a Dutch politician currently serving as Second Deputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands and Minister of Climate and Green Growth in the Schoof cabinet. Hermans previously served as a member of the House of Representatives representing People's Party for Freedom and Democracy between 2017 and 2024.

## Early life and education

Hermans is the daughter of former politician Loek Hermans.
She completed her vwo, studied political science in Amsterdam and completed postdoctoral courses at San Francisco State University and London Business School.

## Career

Hermans's first job was as a consultant in Utrecht. She served as political assistant to Minister Stef Blok and Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
Hermans entered on the House of Representatives on 23 March 2017, and she was her party's spokesperson for healthcare. She served as deputy parliamentary leader of the VVD. She acted as negotiator during the 2021-2022 cabinet formation. She became parliamentary leader on 11 January 2022, when Rutte resigned from the House to become Prime Minister in his new cabinet.
In June 2022, Hermans held a personal speech at the party congress. She denied owing her position to her father or her work as Rutte's assistant. During a subsequent debate, Geert Wilders (PVV) asked her how long she intended to remain Rutte's "bag bearer" (Dutch: tassendrager). Hermans was moved by this remark. Speaker Vera Bergkamp asked Wilders to stay with the subject-matter. Hermans's response was met with the approval of the chamber, and several other parliamentary leaders condemned Wilders' comment.
In July 2023, in the aftermath of Prime Minister Mark Rutte's resignation from national politics and as leader of the VVD, Hermans declined to run to become the next Leader of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy. Following the November 2023 general election, she served as spokesperson for AIVD, medical ethics, and long-term care and as acting parliamentary leader of the VVD, while party leader Dilan Yeşilgöz was still demissionary Minister of Justice and Security. Alongside Eelco Heinen, Hermans assisted Yeşilgöz in talks to form a new governing coalition in 2023–24.
After the PVV, VVD, NSC, and BBB formed the Schoof cabinet, Hermans was sworn in as Second Deputy Prime Minister and as Minister of Climate Policy and Green Growth on 2 July 2024. The Ministry of Climate Policy and Green Growth was established simultaneously, and its responsibilities had previously been part of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy with Rob Jetten as minister without portfolio. When past climate change denial by members of the fellow coalition party PVV was raised during her confirmation hearing, Hermans declared that she was committed to climate change mitigation and that she wanted to promote an optimistic message of green growth.
The governing agreement, presented in September 2024, included a continuation of existing plans to increase wind power and the construction of four nuclear power plants . Hermans later warned that it would not be possible to finish the first nuclear plant by 2035, as had been targeted by the preceding cabinet. The Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (PBL) concluded the following month that the likelihood of the Netherlands meeting its 2030 target – reducing CO$_2$ emissions by 55% compared to 1990 levels – had fallen from 15% to less than 5%, partly due to the cabinet's reversal of its predecessor's measures. Hermans responded that she was working on additional initiatives.

## Political positions

She opposed government efforts to ban laughing gas for recreational use, comparing it to "shooting a mosquito with a cannon". In 2024, Hermans re-introduced a proposal of her party to ban unvaccinated children from attending day care in response to declining vaccination rates and recent cases of the measles and whooping cough.

## Personal life

Hermans is single.
Her sister Caroliene was the political assistant of Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte for various years.
She played hockey.

## Electoral history

Electoral history of Sophie Hermans :
| Year | Body | Party | Party | Pos. | Votes | Result | Result | Ref. |
| Year | Body | Party | Party | Pos. | Votes | Party seats | Individual | Ref. |
| 2017 | House of Representatives | | People's Party for Freedom and Democracy | 16 | 4,417 | 33 | Won | |
| 2021 | House of Representatives | | People's Party for Freedom and Democracy | 3 | 24,115 | 34 | Won | |
| 2023 | House of Representatives | | People's Party for Freedom and Democracy | 2 | 62,320 | 24 | Won | |