Thomas Carolus de Graaf (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈtoːmɑz də ˈɣraːf]; born 11 June 1957) is a Dutch jurist and politician. First elected to the House of Representatives in 1994, he became parliamentary leader of the Democrats 66 (D66) in 1997, and party leader the following year. He became Deputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands in 2003, but resigned two years later following the defeat of his bill aiming to introduce direct mayoral elections. He subsequently served as mayor of Nijmegen between 2007 and 2012, and was elected to the Senate in 2011, leading his party's Senate group from 2015 until 2018. On 1 November 2018, he was appointed Vice-President of the Council of State, serving in this capacity until 1 July 2026.
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Early life and education
De Graaf was born in Amsterdam in 1957. De Graaf's father, Theo de Graaf, was a Catholic People's Party member of parliament and from 1968 until 1977 mayor of Nijmegen. De Graaf attended the Stedelijk Gymnasium Nijmegen from April 1969 until May 1975 and applied at the Radboud University Nijmegen in June 1975 majoring in Law obtaining a Bachelor of Laws degree in June 1977 and worked as a student researcher before graduating with a Master of Laws degree in July 1981.
De Graaf served on the municipal council of Nijmegen from May 1978 until April 1979. De Graaf worked as a researcher at the Radboud University Nijmegen and the Centrum voor Parlementaire Geschiedenis from July 1981 until September 1985. De Graaf worked as a civil servant for the Ministry of the Interior from September 1985 until May 1994. He worked at the Department for Law Enforcement from September 1985 until February 1986, as deputy director-general of the Department for Legislative Affairs from February 1986 until August 1988, as deputy director-general of the Department for Legal Affairs from August 1988 until September 1991, and as deputy director-general of the Department for Law Enforcement from September 1991 until May 1994. De Graaf served on the municipal council of Leiden from April 1990 until May 1994.