{{Short description|Slovak politician}} {{Use dmy dates|date=June 2023}} {{Infobox officeholder | image = Zsolt Simon (jan. 2012).jpg | caption = Simon in 2012 | order = | office = Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development | prime_minister1 = Mikuláš Dzurinda | term_start1 = 16 October 2002 | term_end1 = 4 July 2006 | predecessor1 = Pavol Koncoš | successor1 = Miroslav Jureňa | prime_minister2 = Iveta Radičová | term_start2 = 9 July 2010 | term_end2 = 4 April 2012 | predecessor2 = Vladimír Chovan | successor2 = Ľubomír Jahnátek | office3 = Member of the National Council | term_start3 = 4 July 2006 | term_end3 = 8 July 2010 | term_start4 = 4 April 2012 | term_end4 = 20 March 2020 | signature = | term_end = | party = Party of the Hungarian Coalition (1999-2009)<br>Most–Híd(2009-2016)<br>Hungarian Forum(2019-) | education = | birth_name = | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1970|8|26}} | birth_place = Rimavská Sobota, Czechoslovakia | website = | children = 2 | alma_mater = Mendel University Brno | occupation = }} '''Zsolt Simon''' (born 26 August 1970) is a Slovak politician. He served as the Minister of Agriculture from 2002 to 2006 and again from 2010 to 2012. From 2006 to 2010 and from 2012 to 2020 he was a Member of the National Council.
== Early life == Simon was born in Rimavská Sobota. He is of Hungarian ethnicity. He studied agriculture at the Mendel University, graduating in 1993. Following graduation, he ran a farm and worked as a manager in Agriculture. In 1999, he joined the Party of the Hungarian Coalition.<ref name="rozhovorN">{{Cite web |date=2017-09-03 |title=Zsolt Simon: Fico zničí Bugára aj Danka, Kaliňák vie na každého niečo |url=https://dennikn.sk/869584/zsolt-simon-fico-znici-bugara-aj-danka-kalinak-vie-na-kazdeho-nieco/ |publisher=Denník N |language=}}</ref>
== Political career == Following the 2002 Slovak parliamentary election, Simon won a mandate, which he did not take due to becoming a Minister of Agriculture in the Dzurinda's Second Cabinet.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Vláda SR od 16. 10. 2002 do 04. 07. 2006 {{!}} Úrad vlády SR |url=https://www.vlada.gov.sk/vlada-sr-od-16-10-2002-do-04-07-2006/ |access-date=2023-06-06 |website=www.vlada.gov.sk}}</ref> He was elected a Deputy again in the 2006 Slovak parliamentary election. While serving as an opposition MP, he left the Party of the Hungarian Coalition to co-found the Most–Híd party.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-06-06 |title=Most povedie Bugár |url=https://www.noviny.sk/slovensko/61198-most-povedie-bugar |access-date=2023-06-06 |website=www.noviny.sk |language=sk}}</ref> He was again elected in the 2010 Slovak parliamentary election, following which he again served as an Agriculture minister in the Radičová's Cabinet.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Vláda SR od 09. 07. 2010 do 04.04.2012 {{!}} Úrad vlády SR |url=https://www.vlada.gov.sk/vlada-sr-od-09-07-2010-do-04042012/?csrt=3991493284363955259 |access-date=2023-06-06 |website=www.vlada.gov.sk}}</ref> From 2012 to 2020 he was an opposition MP. Following the 2016 Slovak parliamentary election, he left the Most-Híd party due to his opposition to a coalition agreement with Direction – Slovak Social Democracy. In 2019 he established a new party Hungarian Forum, which failed to pass the representation threshold in the 2020 Slovak parliamentary election.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019 |title=Zsolt Simon zakladá novú stranu: Chceme alternatívu pre Maďarov |url=https://slovensko.hnonline.sk/1872016-zsolt-simon-zaklada-novu-stranu-chceme-alternativu-pre-madarov |publisher=Hospodárske noviny |language=sk}}</ref>
== Personal life == Simon is married and has two sons.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |title=ŽIVOTOPIS: Zsolt Simon |url=https://domov.sme.sk/c/697731/zivotopis-zsolt-simon.html |access-date=2023-06-06 |website=domov.sme.sk |language=sk}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
{{Ministers of the Agriculture in Slovakia}} {{Slovak government 2002-2006}} {{Slovak government 2010-2014}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Simon, Zsolt}} Category:1970 births Category:Living people Category:Most–Híd politicians Category:Party of the Hungarian Community politicians Category:Agriculture ministers of Slovakia Category:People from Rimavská Sobota Category:Hungarian people in Slovakia Category:Members of the National Council (Slovakia) 2006-2010 Category:Members of the National Council (Slovakia) 2012–2016 Category:Members of the National Council (Slovakia) 2016–2020 Category:Mendel University in Brno alumni