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Born in Gdynia in 1963. He graduated with a degree in Law from the University of Gdańsk, where he also received his doctorate. A judge by profession. In the years 1989-1994 he worked in the District Court in Gdynia in the Civil Department (where, among others, he was the head of the department). He began his activity in local government preceded by civic activity (he co-founded the Civic Committee) in 1990, when he became a councillor of the Gdynia City Council. In 1991-1998 he was the Chair of the Gdynia City Council, at the same time representing the city in the Gdańsk Voivodeship Regional Assembly. He has been the Mayor of Gdynia since 1998. Wojciech Szczurek is the initiator of the establishment of the NORDA Metropolitan Forum of Commune Heads, Mayors, and Starosts in 2011. He is also Vice-President of the Board of the Metropolitan Area Gdańsk-Gdynia-Sopot, established in 2015, whose aim is to stimulate cooperation of local governments for the development of Pomerania. He was a member of the Task Team for Urban and Metropolitan Areas of the Polish Academy of Science and the programme board of the Centre for Baltic Studies of the Gdańsk Institute for Market Research. Author of books and publications on law and local government. Awarded with numerous prizes and distinctions, including the Badge of Honour for Merits to Local Government (awarded by the Minister of Administration and Digitalization); the Andrzej Bączkowski Award granted to people who constitute a model of public service; the Design Alive Awards in the Strategist category; the Grzegorz Palka Award in recognition of “building the prestige of Polish local government through model solutions implemented together with the community of Gdynia” (from the award justification) and the Primus Innovatorum Award for his long-standing activity in promoting innovation in transport, logistics and infrastructure. In the ranking of Dziennik Gazeta Prawna “Pearls of Local Government” Wojciech Szczurek was chosen the Mayor of the 25 years of local government. In the same ranking Gdynia won in the category of cities over 100 thousand inhabitants. In Pillars of the Polish Economy ranking he came first in the category of Local Government Manager of the Region, and the Territorial Government magazine Wspólnota awarded him with the title of Local Government Manager of the Year. The editors of Rzeczpospolita honoured him with the Michał Kulesza Fundament of the Republic of Poland Award. In the ranking of Polish cities of the future, organized by FDI magazine, Gdynia won among medium-sized cities, winning both in the main competition and in many individual categories. Wojciech Szczurek was awarded the Commander's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta by the President of the Republic of Poland for his outstanding contribution to the development of local government in Poland and his achievements in his professional and social work for the benefit of the country.