Pieter Groenewald

Petrus Johannes "Pieter" Groenewald (born 27 August 1955) is a South African politician. He has been serving as the Leader of the Freedom Front Plus since his election in November 2016. He started his political career by being elected Mayor of Stilfontein in 1988. He relinguished the position in 1989 due to his election to the House of Assembly. Groenewald co-founded the Freedom Front in 1994, and served as an Member of the National Assembly until his election to the North West Provincial Legislature in 1999. He returned to the National Assembly in 2001.[2][3]

The Honourable

Pieter Groenewald

MP
Groenewald in 2018
Leader of the Freedom Front Plus
Assumed office
12 November 2016
Preceded byPieter Mulder
Member of the National Assembly
Assumed office
2001
In office
9 May 1994 – 1 June 1999
Federal Chairperson of the Freedom Front Plus
In office
11 August 2011 – 12 November 2016
Preceded byAbrie Oosthuizen[1]
Succeeded byAnton Alberts
Provincial Leader of the Freedom Front Plus in the North West
In office
March 1994 – March 2017
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byMichal Groenewald
Personal details
Born (1955-08-27) 27 August 1955
NationalitySouth Africa
Political partyFreedom Front Plus
Other political
affiliations		Conservative Party
Spouse(s)Hedwig
EducationPotchefstroom University for Christian Higher Education

Groenewald's son, Michal, also serves as an MP for the FF+.[4]

Early life

Pieter Groenewald was born in South Africa. He achieved a B.luris degree from the Potchefstroom University for Christian Higher Education. Other degrees that Groenewald has obtained include a Postgraduate Diploma in Communications, a master's degree in Management and Development, and a Doctorate in Politics.[5]

Political career
Groenewald delivering a speech at his party's 2019 election manifesto launch

He was elected Mayor of Stilfontein in 1988. During the South African general election of 1989, Groenewald was elected to the House of Assembly of South Africa for the Stilfontein constituency.[6]

In March 1994, Groenewald co-founded the Freedom Front, a minority rights and pro-Afrikaner nationalism political party. He was elected to the newly-established National Assembly in April of the same year. He served as a Member of Parliament until he was elected to the North West Provincial Legislature in 1999. He served as a North West MPL from 1999 until he returned to the National Assembly in 2001.[6]

Groenewald has held various leadership positions in the Freedom Front Plus, such as Parliamentary Leader and Federal Chairperson from 11 August 2011 until 12 November 2016. He was also the Provincial Leader of the party in the North West from March 1994 to March 2017.[6]

On 12 November 2016, Groenewald was elected Leader of the Freedom Front Plus, succeeding Pieter Mulder, who had announced his intention to stand down. Advocate Anton Alberts succeeded Groenewald as Federal Chairperson.[7]

Groenewald led the Freedom Front Plus to achieve its best election result in the 2019 general election. The party increased its vote share to 2.38% of the national vote, earning it ten seats in the National Assembly. Its highest representation in the National Assembly since its founding in 1994. Additionally, the party won representation in eight of the nine provincial legislatures and largely improved its showing in the provinces of Gauteng and the North West.[8][9][10]

gollark: The *reactor* does.
gollark: No, the energy storage doesn't explode.
gollark: HERESY!
gollark: EVIL!
gollark: Actually, that picture of Chorus City is a little outdated, I'll have to see if I can find a better one.

References
  1. "Mulder earns another term".
  2. Dr Petrus Johannes Groenewald. People's Assembly. Retrieved on 6 March 2019.
  3. FF Plus leader Mulder steps down, eNCA, 12 November 2016. Retrieved on 7 March 2019.
  4. Besent, Mercedes (18 May 2019). "FF-Plus leader rejects nepotism allegations". SABC News. Retrieved 13 March 2020.
  5. Abridged CV's of the first 25 candidates on the FF Plus' National Candidate list, VF Plus. Retrieved on 6 March 2019.
  6. Dr Pieter Groenewald, VF Plus.
  7. Etheridge, Jenna. Groenewald replaces Mulder as FF Plus leader, News24, 12 November 2016. Retrieved on 6 March 2019.
  8. Freedom Front Plus grows in the Northern Provinces, SABC News, 9 May 2019. Retrieved on 30 June 2019.
  9. Underdog FF+ grows stronger, polls show, eNCA, 9 May 2019. Retrieved on 30 June 2019.
  10. Mailovich, Claudi. FF Plus defies expectations, BusinessLIVE, 9 May 2019. Retrieved on 30 June 2019.
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