Norwegian politician apologises after drunken praise of controversial local group

A senior local politician from Norway’s Centre Party has issued a public apology after a video surfaced showing him praising members of a controversial group while heavily intoxicated, Dagbladet reports.

Magnus Weggesrud, group leader for the Centre Party in Buskerud county, admitted he was “embarrassed and ashamed” of his behaviour in the video, which was posted to TikTok by Rino Greven Tollefsen, a central figure in the so-called Vestfossen milieu—a group previously scrutinised by police and linked to local unrest.

In the footage, Weggesrud is seen slurring compliments to Tollefsen and others, calling them “fucking awesome” and declaring, “You’re like the kings of Vestfossen.” He later told Dagbladet he had no memory of the conversation, which took place after a night out in late May.

“I drank far too much and made a choice I neither remember nor understand today,” Weggesrud said. “This does not reflect my values, and I strongly distance myself from that environment and what I said.”

The politician claimed he only discovered the video while scrolling through TikTok and was unaware he had been filmed. He has since apologised publicly in interviews with Drammens Tidende, NRK, and Dagbladet, calling the incident a “hard lesson” and vowing to “tighten up” his conduct.

Tollefsen, who posted the video to his 14,000-follower TikTok account, told Drammens Tidende that Weggesrud’s remarks were a recognition of the group’s community work, including running a local aid centre. Weggesrud declined to respond to Tollefsen’s comments.

Pål Rørby, leader of Buskerud’s Centre Party and mayor of Hemsedal, confirmed the incident would have no formal consequences for Weggesrud, describing him as a “very capable and organised politician” who had “laid himself flat”—a Norwegian expression for taking full responsibility.

“He’s felt the backlash on social media and in the press,” Rørby told NRK. “There’s a lesson here, and I hope both he and others can move forward.”