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Dutch far-right politician and leader of the PVV party Geert Wilders.
The Netherlands drifts to the far right
Geert Wilders, the far-right Dutch politician notorious for his fervent anti-Islam and anti-migrant views, has struck a deal to form a coalition government — making the Netherlands the latest EU country to drift to the hard right.
After months of talks, Wilders on Wednesday said his Party for Freedom, or PVV, had reached an agreement with the center-right People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy, the centrist New Social Contract party, and the populist Farmer Citizen Movement.
But there’s a catch. It’s unclear who will be appointed prime minister, though we know it won’t be Wilders, given that it was one of the concessions he made to get parties to the negotiation table following a shocking victory in November’s election.
“We have a deal among negotiators, and we will return to the position of prime minister at a later moment,” Wilders said Wednesday.
Pieter Omtzigt, leader of the NSC, said the next PM will need to be a leader who “unites” in order for the new government to succeed. It remains to be seen who might be a palatable choice for the new uneasy coalition, and we’ll be watching this space closely.
Dutch media reports have pointed to Ronald Plasterk, the former interior minister and a Labour party veteran, as a leading contender for prime minister — but nothing is set in stone.
15th January 2024 Geert Wilders arrives at palace on the Dam for the Dutch Kings annual New Years Reception.
Wilders in the wilderness: Far-right Dutchman drops PM bid
Dutch far-right politician Geert Wilders will not become prime minister of his country, despite getting the most votes in last year’s election.
Although Wilders’ PVV party swept to victory on a scorching anti-Islam and anti-migrant “Dutch First” message, he still needed coalition partners to form a government. Months of talks with a handful of center-right parties ended this week without support for Wilders as PM.
The result prolongs the political uncertainty for the Netherlands, which looks headed for a bizarre “extra-parliamentary cabinet” headed by a technocrat cabinet in which none of the ministers is from the PVV or the other three parties.
On the one hand, the episode is another example of the practical limits for European far-right parties, despite their rising electoral fortunes. (We saw something similar in Portugal last weekend, where the far-right Chega party was sweet at the polls but still too toxic for a coalition.)
But watch closely. Wilders has said he would “like a right-wing cabinet.” Will Wilders, given his obvious popularity, be able to pull policy rightward even from outside the government?
Dutch far-right politician and leader of the PVV, Geert Wilders, reacts as he meets the press in November 2023.
Who will work with Wilders?
That process isn’t going well. Success began looking less likely Tuesday evening when the center-right New Social Contract party announced it would not join a PVV-led government. The NSC’s leader explained that Wilders has made economic promises his party can’t keep, though the NSC also has concerns about the Islamophobic rhetoric that’s central to Wilders’ political brand.
Wilders will continue to try to form a right-wing government. If he fails, the Netherlands might see a Labour-Green alliance that shifts the country’s government to the left. Failing that, they might hold new elections. The talks were supposed to produce a report to parliament before it breaks for recess on Feb. 16, but it’s not clear that deadline can be met.
As in some other European countries – Germany, for example – far-right parties are surging, but few will partner with them to form governments.Dutch far-right politician and leader of the Freedom Party Geert Wilders gestures as he meets with party members after the parliamentary elections in The Hague, Netherlands, on Nov. 23, 2023.
Dutch voters take hard-right turn: Will more of the EU follow?
Wilders has long promoted anti-Muslim policies, including a ban on Islamic schools, Qurans, mosques, and the wearing of hijab inside government buildings. Wilders has now tempered these pledges, saying he will “continue to moderate” his policies as coalition talks resume on Monday.
Wilders’ Freedom Party is expected to obtain 37 seats in the 150-seat Parliament, which falls short of the 76 needed under the Netherlands’ proportional representation system to secure a majority of seats. He must cement alliances with enough other parties to do so, and his dance card includes the center-right New Social Contract Party, with 20 seats, as well as the right-leaning People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy, aka VVV, which formed the previous government, now with 24 seats.
Outgoing VVV Prime Minister Mark Rutte says he will not join Wilders’ coalition but could back a “centre-right” government. NSC leader Pieter Omtzigt said he could not enter a coalition with Wilders unless he recanted the Quran and mosque ban. And Wilders wants to cut EU funding and promised a referendum on membership, while Omtzigt opposes a “Nexit.”
Meanwhile, Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orbán toasted Wilder’s win, saying “The winds of change are here!” Far-right Flemish independence leader Tom Van Grieken, who is leading in the polls for Belgium’s June 2024 elections, also congratulated Wilders, saying “Parties like ours are on their way in the whole of Europe.”
But perhaps the most significant beneficiary could be Marine Le Pen, leader of France’s far-right Rassemblement National, who also cheered Wilders’ victory. Rassemblement National is leading opinion polls in France for next June’s elections to the European Parliament, with 28% of the vote compared to 19% for French President Emmanuel Macron’s party and its allies. A shift to the right could reverse the EU’s stand on policies related to climate action, EU reform, and weapons for Ukraine, while also impacting migration policies.