Patrick Janssens
Patrick Janssens is a former Belgian politician, born on 19 September 1956. He was a member of the SP.a and the former mayor of the port city Antwerp.Career
He studied "Political and Social Sciences" and "Applied Economic Sciences" at the University of Antwerp and Statistics at the London School of Economics. From 1979 to 1985 he was an assistant in the Department of Sociology and Social Policy at the University of Antwerp, first of Jan Vranken and then of Herman Deleeck.
From 1985 to 1989, he ran a market research agency after which he undertook several positions at the marketing agency VVL/BBDO until 1999.
In 1999, he was appointed president of the Socialist Party. He resigned as president to become mayor of Antwerp in 2003. In the general election held the same year, Janssens was elected to the Belgian Chamber of People's Representatives but he left the Chamber one year later when the 2004 regional elections saw Janssens becoming a member of the Flemish Parliament. In the municipal elections of 2006, he was overwhelmingly elected for another term as mayor.
He was longlisted for the 2008 World Mayor award.
Janssens lost the 2012 municipal elections to Bart De Wever of the N-VA.
On August 25, 2014 he became general director of football club KRC Genk but was succeeded by on February 9, 2018.
