Loading...
Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options
Associated PressMarch 15, 2017
Right-wing populist leader Geert Wilders walks onto the stage in the closing debate at parliament in The Hague, Netherlands on Tuesday, March 14, 2017. (Remko de Waal ANP POOL via AP)Right-wing populist leader Geert Wilders walks onto the stage in the closing debate at parliament in The Hague, Netherlands on Tuesday, March 14, 2017. (Remko de Waal ANP POOL via AP)

Residents of the Netherlands vote Wednesday in elections for the 150-seat lower house of parliament. A look at the key players and issues:

What's at stake?

The election is seen as a test of far-right populism ahead of national elections in far bigger European nations, France and Germany, where populists also are polling strongly. In the Netherlands, it's about what kind of coalition will run the country for the next four years and whether anti-Islam lawmaker Geert Wilders can win enough seats to force his way into coalition talks.

Who's in the running?

Prime Minster Mark Rutte of the right-wing VVD party holds a narrow lead in polls over Wilders' Party for Freedom. But while Rutte is leading, his party is set to lose seats and Wilders looks likely to increase the size of his parliamentary bloc compared to five years ago. But other parties also are making gains—including the increasingly right-wing Christian Democrats, the pro-European Union liberal democrats D66, and the left-wing Green Left party led by 30-year-old Jesse Klaver. The 12.9 million voters are spoiled for choice in the country's splintered political landscape: A total of 28 parties are fielding candidates.

What are the main issues?

Wilders' anti-Islam, anti-European Union platform and the reaction of mainstream parties to his one-page manifesto have dominated campaigning. Wilders wants to close Dutch borders to immigrants from Muslim countries, shut mosques and ban the Quran, as well as take the Netherlands out of the EU. That radical platform goes too far for mainstream parties, but many have moved to the right in an attempt to appeal to Wilders voters. Other issues like the economy, health care and the environment have likewise been overshadowed by the populist agendas. In the final days of campaigning, the diplomatic crisis with Turkey over the past week and Rutte's handling of it has also taken center stage.

What happens next?

Unofficial results should be known by late Wednesday or early Thursday. The official result will not be published by the country's electoral commission until March 21. A day later, the old lower house will meet for the last time and on March 23 new lawmakers will be installed.

So when do the Dutch get a new government?

Don't hold your breath. This could take a while. Polls suggest no obvious left or right-leaning majority coalition will emerge, meaning lengthy negotiations between party leaders to hammer out a new constellation to lead the country is likely. The talks could take months.

More: Europe
Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.

The latest from america

“One of the things I find most appealing about the award-winning writer and poet Mary Karr is her forthright, almost brutal, honesty.”
James Martin, S.J.July 01, 2025
Pope Leo XIV urged new archbishops to help him foster unity in a church rich in diversity. Eight of those new archbishops are from the United States, and they spoke to Catholic News Service about how they can help promote fraternity in today’s polarized world.
This week on “Jesuitical,” Zac and Ashley chat with Christopher White about his new book, ‘Pope Leo XVI: Inside the Conclave and the Dawn of a New Papacy.’
JesuiticalJune 30, 2025
Kerry Weber, incoming president of the Catholic Media Association, and executive editor of America Magazine, speaks June 26, 2025, during the Catholic Media Conference in Phoenix. (OSV News photo/Bob Roller)
Kerry Weber is an executive editor for America. On May 20, 2025, the Catholic Media Association announced that she was elected president,
Grace LenahanJune 30, 2025