Per Borten

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Per Borten

Per Borten (April 3, 1913 – January 20, 2005) was a Norwegian politician from the Centre Party and Prime Minister of Norway from 1965 to 1971.

Borten was born in Flå in the municipality of Melhus in Sør-Trøndelag, and was educated Agriculturist from the Agricultural University of Norway in 1939. He started his political career serving as mayor of his home municipally, Flå, from 1945 to 1955. He was elected to the Norwegian parliament in 1949 and stayed there until his retirement in 1977.

As Prime Minister from 1965 to 1971, he headed a four-party center-right coalition. He was also appointed president of the Odelsting, acted as the parliamentary leader for his party and served as its chairman from 1955 to 1967.

After his retirement from politics, Borten continued to speak out on issues such as nuclear disarmament, clandestine surveillance, and the controversy on Norway's relationship to the European Union. He served on the boards of several public banking organizations. He earned a reputation for being an engaging and somewhat contrarian figure in the Norwegian political landscape. His down-to-earth nature had been strongly underlined in 1969, when newspaper Dagbladet interviewed him at his farm while he was prime minister. He did the interview wearing nothing but a pair of shoes, a hat and trunks, only days before Queen Elizabeth II was invited to the same farm on a state visit to Norway. The picture of Borten in his underwear went around the world, and the British newspaper Daily Mirror printed the picture over two pages with the headline: "Now the Norwegian Prime Minister is ready to receive the Queen." Another popular story was when Borten's Defense Minister, Otto Grieg Tidemand, invited him and others to a private dinner. After eating, Tidemand surprised his guests with the finest vintage brandy. Without blinking Borten responded by pouring the brandy into his coffee, making himself "karsk".

Per Borten is credited for leading the modernization of what was then named Bondepartiet (the Agrarian Party) into today's Centre Party. He was an active opponent of Norway joining the European Union.

Borten passed away at St. Olav's Hospital in Trondheim at the age of 91.