{{Short description|Dutch politician (born 1983)}} {{Infobox officeholder | image = Willemijn Aerdts, March 2026.jpg | caption = Aerdts in 2026 | birth_name = Wilhelmina Johanna Maria Aerdts | birth_date = {{birth-date and age|21 April 1983}}
| office = [[List of ministers of economic affairs of the Netherlands#List of state secretaries for economic affairs|State Secretary for the Digital Economy and Digital Sovereignty]] | term_start = 23 February 2026 | term_end =
| office1 = Member of the [[Senate (Netherlands)|Senate]] | term_start1 = 13 June 2023 | term_end1 = 23 February 2026
| party = [[Democrats 66]] | occupation = {{hlist|Politician|academic}} | alma_mater = {{ubl|[[Utrecht University]]|[[Leiden University]]}} }}
'''Wilhelmina Johanna Maria''' "'''Willemijn'''" '''Aerdts''' (born 21 April 1983) is a Dutch academic and politician of the [[Democrats 66]] (D66), who has served as [[List of ministers of economic affairs of the Netherlands#List of state secretaries for economic affairs|State Secretary for the Digital Economy and Digital Sovereignty]] in the [[Jetten cabinet]] since 23 February 2026. She previously served as a member of the [[Senate (Netherlands)|Senate]] between 2023 and 2026, and was a lecturer and researcher at the [[Campus The Hague#Institute of Security and Global Affairs|Institute of Security and Global Affairs]] of [[Leiden University]].
== Career == === Academic career === Aerdts obtained her master's degree in International Relations in Historical Perspective from [[Utrecht University]] and subsequently obtained an LLM in International Public Law.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Over Willemijn Aerdts |url=https://willemijnaerdts.nl/about/over-mij |access-date=2023-06-19 |website=Willemijn Aerdts |language=nl}}</ref> At [[Leiden University]], she worked on her [[PhD]] on the supervision of the [[Dutch Military Intelligence and Security Service]] and the [[General Intelligence and Security Service|AIVD]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=7 December 2019 |title=Expert AIVD: 'Wel degelijk dreiging vanuit Cornelius Haga Lyceum' |url=https://www.ad.nl/amsterdam/expert-aivd-wel-degelijk-dreiging-vanuit-cornelius-haga-lyceum~aa5d284f/162124071/ |access-date=19 June 2023 |publisher=[[Algemeen Dagblad]]}}</ref> In May 2023, her book {{lang|nl|Diensten met geheimen}} ('Services with secrets') was published.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Diensten met geheimen |url=https://www.universiteitleiden.nl/agenda/2023/05/diensten-met-geheimen |access-date=2023-06-19 |website= |publisher=[[Universiteit Leiden]] |language=}}</ref>
=== Political career === Between 2021 and 2023, Aerdts was the chair of the Els Borst Network, the [[women's wing]] of D66.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Willemijn Aerdts |url=https://d66.nl/mensen/willemijn-aerdts/ |access-date=2023-06-19 |website= |publisher=D66 |language=}}</ref> She was placed second on the party's [[List of Democrats 66 candidates in the 2023 Dutch Senate election|candidate list]] for the [[2023 Dutch Senate election|2023 Senate election]].<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2023-01-17 |title=Kandidaten Eerste Kamer |url=https://d66.nl/nieuws/kandidaten-eerste-kamer/ |access-date=2023-06-19 |website=D66 |language=}}</ref> After being elected, she has been a member of the [[Senate (Netherlands)|Senate]] since 13 June 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mr.drs. W.J.M. (Willemijn) Aerdts |url=https://www.parlement.com/id/vlzlc88ke84g/w_j_m_willemijn_aerdts |access-date=2023-06-19 |website=Parlement.com |language=nl}}</ref>
In February 2026, she was nominated for the position of State Secretary for the Digital Economy and Digital Sovereignty in the [[Jetten cabinet]]. She was sworn in on 23 February 2026.
== Bibliography == * {{lang|nl|Diensten met geheimen: Hoe de AIVD en MIVD Nederland veilig houden}} (2023)
== References == {{Reflist}}
== External links == * [https://www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/staffmembers/willemijn-aerdts Leiden University profile] * [https://www.parlement.com/id/vlzlc88ke84g/w_j_m_willemijn_aerdts Parlement.com profile]
{{Jetten cabinet}} {{Members of the Senate of the Netherlands, 2023–2027}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aerdts, Willemijn}} [[Category:1983 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:21st-century Dutch politicians]] [[Category:21st-century Dutch women politicians]] [[Category:Academic staff of Leiden University]] [[Category:Democrats 66 politicians]] [[Category:Dutch women academics]] [[Category:Leiden University alumni]] [[Category:Members of the Senate (Netherlands)]] [[Category:State secretaries for economic affairs of the Netherlands]] [[Category:Utrecht University alumni]]