Dutch far right loses support in election, opening door for centrist coalition

THE HAGUE - The Netherlands' next government looks likely to exclude the far right and could be led by an openly gay prime minister after an election in which Geert Wilders' anti-Islam Freedom Party lost ground and support surged for the centrist D66.

With most of the votes counted from Wednesday's election, Rob Jetten's D66 and Wilders' PVV were tied early on Thursday, with both projected to take 26 seats in the 150-seat lower house of parliament.

That was a sharp drop for the far right, even if it was tied for first spot, as it lost over a quarter of its seats in two years, while D66 tripled its score.

The Dutch election was seen as a test of whether the far right can expand its reach or whether it has peaked in parts of Europe.

The outcome suggests there are some limits to its appeal, but also that it is an enduring part of the European political landscape at a time when many other parties have toughened their stance on immigration.

TURNING THE PAGE?

All major mainstream parties have ruled out governing with Wilders this time after he brought down the last coalition, which was led by his own party.

This leaves him no viable path to a majority, unlike D66's young leader Jetten.

"We've shown not only to the Netherlands, but also to the world that it is possible to beat populist and extreme-right movements," Jetten told the crowd at his party's election-night celebration.        

TOUGH COALITION TALKS AHEAD

For Wilders, Wednesday's outcome was well below the 37 seats the anti-immigration PVV won in the previous election in 2023.

But it was also the first time that there was a tie between the top two parties. With less than 3,000 votes between the top two, it could take days for a winner to emerge.

That could further delay and complicate coalition talks, which usually take months in the Netherlands.

Traditionally, the party with the most votes is first tasked by parliament with trying to form a government.

On Wednesday evening, exit polls and early results had indicated a narrow victory for the progressive D66, with Wilders' party trailing in second place. But vote counting later indicated a slightly stronger showing for PVV.    

WILDERS SAYS IT'S NOT OVER YET

With mainstream parties having ruled out a coalition with Wilders, that puts Jetten in pole position to form a government and become the country's youngest prime minister.

"I'm very excited that we're going to have the first homosexual prime minister in the Netherlands and also one that is combining all the positive forces," Lotte van Slooten, a 25-year-old voter, said at the D66 rally.

Wilders said he would take the lead in forming a government if the PVV ultimately came out on top, however.

"As long as it's not 100% clear, D66 can't take the lead. We will do everything we can to prevent that," he said in a post on X.

Counting of ballots was still under way, but with 98.8% of votes accounted for it was not expected to change the fact that the two biggest parties are tied for the top spot.

However, voters can still expect a long wait before having a new government.

“With the outcome it’s difficult to form a coalition, which we need of course to run the country in a stable way,” said 61-year-old auditor Herman van Meel, 61, who welcomed the fact that Wilders' party had a lower score than in 2023. REUTERS