Faissal Boulakjar

Faissal Boulakjar (born 28 April 1979) is a Moroccan-born Dutch politician, who has been serving as a member of the House of Representatives since the 2021 Dutch general election. He is a member of the social liberal party Democrats 66 (D66) and previously held a seat in the Breda municipal council (2014–2021).

Early life, education, and career Boualkjar was born in 1979 in the Moroccan village Tifarouine and has six older siblings – three brothers and three sisters. His family emigrated to the Netherlands in 1983 after his father had moved there in 1966 to work in a factory of the snack brand Nibb-it. He grew up in the Breda neighborhood Heusdenhout. He also helped organize free futsal training for disadvantaged children next to his job. Boulakjar became a reintegration adviser in 2011 but left that position the following year to work as a personal injury adviser until 2018. Thereafter, he served as an independent trainer and adviser and as an adviser of the program Samen Ouder Worden (Getting older together), which promotes volunteering for elderly people. He was re-elected in the 2018 municipal election as D66's third candidate, remained vice caucus leader, and served as the party's spokesperson for construction, housing, climate, security, and the region. In 2019, Boulakjar and councilors from the Labour Party wrote a policy paper, in which they called for solving problems in the vulnerable district Hoge Vucht. He also served as manager of D66's campaign in the Breda region for three elections in 2018 and 2019.

He ran for member of parliament in the 2021 general election, being placed sixteenth on D66's party list. Boulakjar was installed as House member on 31 March after he had been elected with 2,875 preference votes. He vacated his seat in the Breda municipal council the following day. Boulakjar is a member of the parliamentary Committees for Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality; for Economic Affairs and Climate Policy; for Infrastructure and Water Management; and for the Interior; and he is on the Benelux Interparliamentary Consultative Council. In August 2023, a judge determined that these investments should be within the purview of the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets.

Personal life While a member of parliament, Boulakjar moved from Teteringen to Breda, which is located nearby.

Electoral history

+ YearBodyPartyVotesResult.Party seatsIndividual 2021 House of Representatives Democrats 66 16 2,875 24 2023 House of Representatives Democrats 66 14 1,412 9