Samenvatting

Each of the more than four hundred Dutch municipalities is governed by an executive board led by a mayor. This board of municipal executives is formed by a coalition of political parties reflecting the balance in the general council of elected members. The mayor is a member of the board; he is not elected by the people. The mayor is officially appointed by the national cabinet of ministers, but in fact since recently selected by the local council. In the Netherlands there has been a significant rise in the number of forced resignations by mayors. From 2000 to 2010 more than fifty mayors were forced to resign before the end of their term. The impression that the mayor's position has recently weakened, is confirmed by case studies. The Dutch mayor is in limbo between being elected and being appointed. In itself this is a major factor contributing to the weakening of Dutch mayors in general. This might give more room than before to private reasons and micro factors causing mayors to resign early. Mayors wishing to survive, should give more attention to signals about ‘strengths and weaknesses’ of their position in a field of political ‘stakeholders’.