Ritt Bjerregaard was born on May 19, 1941 in Copenhagen, Denmark. She obtained a degree in teaching in 1964. However, her ex-tensive political work and career has played the predominant role in her professional life. She has held numerous high level political posts at both international, national and local level. In January 2006, she took office as Lord Mayor of the City of Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark, after having been elected to the City Council. She is married to the acknowledged Danish writer and historian Søren Mørch (born 1933).