- The Netherlands will have a new prime minister for the first time in over a decade
- Polls suggest at least three parties are still fighting for the top spot
- Talks to form a coalition government usually take months
- Far right, left, up in the last polls
AMSTERDAM, Nov 22 (Portal) – Voters in the Netherlands cast their ballots on Wednesday in a close election in which opinion polls show at least three parties – including the far right – could win.
Voters’ decisions could be crucial for the country’s immigration and climate policies as well as its relationships with partners in the European Union.
A poll published on the eve of the election showed Islamophobic firebrand Geert Wilders’ Freedom Party (PVV) tied for the lead with outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s conservative People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD), closely followed by a joint Labor/ Green ticket.
Immigration restrictions – the issue that triggered the collapse of Rutte’s last cabinet after 13 years in power – was a key issue in the election campaign.
“Now it’s enough. The Netherlands can’t take it anymore. We must now think of our own people first. Borders closed. Zero asylum seekers,” Wilders said in a television debate.
Voting took place at polling stations including the Anne Frank and Van Gogh Museums in Amsterdam, clubs, train stations and even a petting zoo.
No party is on track to get more than 20% of the vote, and with many Dutch people still undecided before that day, many scenarios are possible.
Justice Minister Dilan Yesilgoz, a hard-line Turkish immigrant who replaced Rutte at the head of the VVD, hopes to become the country’s first female prime minister.
“Maybe she can breathe new life,” said 67-year-old voter Maria Tolman, who voted for VVD.
Others in this northern Amsterdam district were hoping for an alliance between Yesilgoz and the far right in a political landscape that already requires multiple parties to form a majority.
“If Wilders sticks to his promises… I don’t see why that would be a bad combination,” said voter Pieter Schilperoort, who supported VVD.
‘NIGHTMARE’?
[1/5]People vote at a polling station during the Dutch general election in The Hague, Netherlands, November 22, 2023. Portal/Yves Herman acquire license rights
With the Netherlands a founding member of the EU and Rutte a key player at EU summits, other leaders will also be closely scrutinizing the outcome, as parties on the right have suggested exceptions to EU rules for Agriculture and immigration to apply.
A self-proclaimed fan of Hungary’s Viktor Orban, Wilders is explicitly anti-EU, calling on the Netherlands to take back control of its borders, significantly cut its payments to the union and block new members from joining.
He has also repeatedly said that the Netherlands should stop supplying weapons to Ukraine because it needs the weapons to defend itself. However, none of the parties with which he could potentially form a government share these ideas.
A strong performance by Wilders could lead to a far-right coalition in the Netherlands with a strong anti-immigrant line, although he has tried to soften his image in the hope of entering government – which appealed to some voters.
“I decided to vote for Geert Wilders. I think his manifesto is better than in recent years, a little gentler in everything. That suits me,” said voter Ria van der Vaarst.
Others said they feared a strong result for Wilders.
“I hope I don’t wake up tomorrow and we have Wilders as prime minister. This is a nightmare,” said Amsterdam-based architect Arie van der Neut after casting his vote for the pro-European center-left Volt Party.
This election is also about the question of whether voters in one of Europe’s wealthiest countries are willing to continue funding climate policies, such as the expensive expansion of offshore wind farms, at a time when the cost of living is experiencing a shock across the continent.
MP Pieter Omtzigt, a centrist who founded his own party after breaking with the Christian Democrats, is slightly behind the top three in recent polls but is still expected to play an important role.
“We were always promised that we would get at least some control over migration, not zero migration… and that control of migration never came. And I think that plays into Wilders’s hands,” he told reporters after casting his ballot.
Polls will close at 9pm (GMT 2000) when national broadcaster NOS releases its first election poll.
Although it is tradition, there is no guarantee that the party that wins the most seats will ultimately become prime minister, in a country where the vote is split among many parties and coalition negotiations can take months.
Rutte will serve in the role of administrator until a new government is installed, probably in the first half of 2024.
Reporting by Johnny Cotton, Toby Sterling, Bart Meijer, Stephanie van den Berg, Charlotte van Campenhout, text by Ingrid Melander; Edited by Toby Chopra and Angus MacSwan
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