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Bjørnar Moxnes
Photo: rødt.no, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons13

Bjørnar Moxnes

Norwegian politician

Bjørnar Moxnes (born 19 December 1981) is a Norwegian politician and activist representing the left-wing political party, the Red Party in the Storting. Moxnes opposes the European Union, characterizing Norway's participation in the EEA as undemocratic.2

From Wikipedia’s article on Bjørnar Moxnes (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Born Dec 19, 1981.1

About

Moxnes describes himself as a socialist. He served as the leader of the Red Party from 2012 to 2023, when he resigned in the wake of stealing a pair of sunglasses from a shop at Oslo Airport Gardermoen. Moxnes had previously served as the party's deputy leader from 2010 to 2012.

From Wikipedia’s article on Bjørnar Moxnes, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.2

Companies

Early life and education

  • Date not recordedUniversity of Oslo3
  • Date not recordedOslo Cathedral School3

Education

Moxnes has a degree in sociology from the University of Oslo. His master's thesis Med makt i Bagasjen, En analyse av politkerelitens yrkesmobilitet (With Power in the Luggage, An Analysis of the Political Elite's occupational mobility) was about politicians changing careers to PR, a subject Moxnes was very interested in as a politician.

Leadership in Red Youth

In 2004, Moxnes after two years of being a secretary, was chosen to become the leader of Red Youth. As a leader, Moxnes represented Red Youth in the Supreme Court of Norway, where the organisation was sentenced for publishing schoolbooks for free on the internet. Moxnes ranked eighth in Verdens Gang's survey of the country's biggest political talents.

From Wikipedia’s article on Bjørnar Moxnes (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Career

Occupation: politician.7 8

  • Since 2025Member of the Parliament of Norway4
  • 2021 to 2025Member of the Parliament of Norway4
  • 2017 to 2021Member of the Parliament of Norway4 5
  • 2012 to 2023Chair, Red Party6
  • 2012 to 2023Party leader, Red Party4
  • 2004 to 2006President of Red Youth (Norway)4

Personal life

  • BornDec 19, 1981, Oslo9
  • CitizenshipNorway10

He was married to Kjerstin Aukrust from 2014 until they announced their separation in July 2022. Around the same time, he announced that he was in a relationship with Lina Aas-Eng. Together with Aukrust, he has two children. In October 2024, he announced that he and Aas-Eng had married.

In November 2023, Moxnes revealed that he had a mental health problem after being additionally caught stealing from grocery stores in Oslo. He had to relinquish his seat in Parliament temporarily, being put on sick leave. His seat in Parliament was filled by deputy Stine Westrum.

From Wikipedia’s article on Bjørnar Moxnes (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Politics

Politician and party leader of Red

After Moxnes stepped down as leader of Red Youth, he was elected to the leadership of Red Electoral Alliance. After the establishment of the party Red in 2007, Moxnes was elected into the leadership. In 2010, he was chosen as deputy leader of Red, and on 6 May 2012, he replaced Turid Thomassen as the party's leader.

In 2011, Moxnes was elected to Oslo's council. He has since then been a very central politician in many Oslo-situations for defending Oslo University Hospital, protesting against the sculpture park in Ekebergskogen, and was against the Olympics in Oslo for the 2022 Olympics.

During the national elections in 2013 and 2017, Moxnes was the first candidate for Red in the Oslo district, and in 2017, he was elected as a representative in the Storting.

In June 2023, Romerikes Blad revealed that Moxnes had been caught shoplifting a pair of sunglasses at Oslo Gardermoen airport. He initially claimed it was an accident, but it was later revealed that he had removed the pricetag and stuffed them in his suitcase, raising questions about the sincerity of his explanation. With Moxnes' consent, the newspaper Verdens Gang released the surveillance footage showing him taking the sunglasses and placing them first on his luggage trolley, then putting them in his pocket shortly thereafter. On 3 July, the party secretary Reidar Strisland confirmed that Moxnes had taken leave as party leader and that deputy leader Marie Sneve Martinussen would become interim leader. On 18 July, the party announced that his sick leave would be expanded to 25 July. On 24 July, Moxnes announced that he would resign as leader and deputy leader Marie Sneve Martinussen was designated his successor until the 2024 convention.

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Economics

Moxnes opposes right-wing economics, believing that most other parties in Stortinget undermine worker's rights and transfer power from the workers to the rich. He argues for a democratic economy, which he believes is not possible under capitalism. He stated in 2017 that he believes that just like how the people can choose the government, they should be able to choose their leadership in the workplace. He argues that the Conservative Party serves to secure the capitalist rights of the rich minority, where the small elite has too much power over Norway's most important national resources.

He explicitly states that the party is not communist, but socialist, separating themselves from Rødt's predecessor AKP's Maoist roots. He describes socialism as a system where power and wealth is distributed fairly, instead of allowing a small elite to own as much wealth as half of the population on Earth.

Moxnes believes that the wages for politicians in Stortinget is too high, and wants to reduce the wages. Moxnes argues that because the wages are too high, the politicians in government become too disconnected from the general populace, and that reducing it will assist politicians in creating fairer policies. When the Labour Party and the Centre Party elected to freeze wages, he stated that, "If I was Støre (Labour) or Vedum (Centre), I would be embarrassed.", and pushed for reductions in the wages.

EEA/European Union

Moxnes opposes the EEA, arguing that the deal with the EEA is undemocratic, and that it transfers power from elected assemblies in Norway to the EU. He characterizes the EEA as a croft deal. Moxnes argues that policies that would help Norwegian workers and assist against social dumping are blocked by undemocratic laws enforced by the European Union.

Climate

Moxnes believes that capitalism is one of the main causes of climate change, arguing that capitalism will not create solutions to solve climate change.

From Wikipedia’s article on Bjørnar Moxnes (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Sources

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