Thorstein Treholt was a Norwegian

Norway

Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...

 politician for the Labour Party

Norwegian Labour Party

The Labour Party is a social-democratic political party in Norway. It is the senior partner in the current Norwegian government as part of the Red-Green Coalition, and its leader, Jens Stoltenberg, is the current Prime Minister of Norway....

. He was the father of convicted Norwegian spy Arne Treholt

Arne Treholt

Arne Treholt is a former Norwegian Labour Party politician and diplomat convicted of high treason and espionage on behalf of the Soviet Union and Iraq during the Cold War. Treholt's espionage is generally seen as the most serious spy case in the modern history of Norway...

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He was born in Skoger

Skoger

Skoger is a village located on the border between Buskerud and Vestfold counties, Norway. Of its population of 1,082 as of 2005, 654 were registered as residents of Drammen whereas 428 live in Sande in Vestfold county, Norway....

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An agronomist by education, Treholt was state secretary to the Minister of Agriculture from 1954 to 1957, serving under three different ministers during the period (Rasmus Nordbø, Olav Meisdalshagen

Olav Meisdalshagen

Olav Meisdalshagen was a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party. He is best known for serving as the Norwegian Minister of Finance from December 1947 to November 1951 and as the Norwegian Minister of Agriculture from January 1955 to May 1956...

 and Harald Johan Løbak

Harald Johan Løbak

Harald Johan Løbak was a Norwegian politician for the Norwegian Labour Party.He was born in Trysil.He was elected to the Norwegian Parliament from Hedmark in 1945, and was re-elected on six occasions....

). He later became the Minister of Agriculture in 1971–1972 in the first cabinet Bratteli

First cabinet Bratteli

The Bratteli's First Cabinet governed Norway between 17 March 1971 and 18 October 1972. The Labour Party cabinet was led by Trygve Bratteli.On 8 May 1972 there was a cabinet reshuffle...

 and 1973–1976 in the second cabinet Bratteli

Second cabinet Bratteli

Bratteli's Second Cabinet governed Norway between 16 October 1973 and 15 January 1976. The Labour Party cabinet was led by Trygve Bratteli. It had the following composition:-Cabinet members:-State Secretaries:-References:* - Regjeringen.no...

, the two periods only interrupted by the non-labour cabinet Korvald. Meanwhile Treholt was appointed to cabinet his place was filled by Magne Kristian Mælumshagen and Åge Hovengen

Åge Hovengen

Åge Hovengen is a Norwegian politician for the Labour Party.He was elected to the Norwegian Parliament from Oppland in 1977, and was re-elected on two occasions. He had previously served as a deputy representative during the term 1973–1977...

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As an elected politician he was elected to the Norwegian Parliament from Oppland

Oppland

is a county in Norway, bordering Sør-Trøndelag, Møre og Romsdal, Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Akershus, Oslo and Hedmark. The county administration is in Lillehammer. Oppland is, together with Hedmark, one of the only two landlocked counties of Norway....

 in 1958, and later re-elected on four occasions. On the local level he was a member of the municipality councils of Nord-Aurdal

Nord-Aurdal

Nord-Aurdal is a municipality in Oppland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Valdres. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Fagernes....

 1951–1955, Brandbu

Brandbu

Brandbu is a village in the municipality of Gran in Oppland county, Norway.Brandbu is located in the traditional district of Hadeland. It was earlier known as "Augedalsbro" . Locals still commonly refer to the village as "Brua" . Brandbu was a parish in earlier times and later a municipality of...

 1959–1961 and Gran

Gran, Norway

is a municipality in Oppland county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Hadeland. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Jaren. There is also a village of Gran located within the municipality....

 from 1962 to 1967.

His career in politics ended with the post of County Governor of Oppland, which he held from 1976 to 1981.