Geert Wilders' far-right Freedom Party unexpectedly won the most seats in parliamentary elections, moving towards forming a coalition government.
Geert Wilders's Freedom Party (PVV) beat all predictions to win 37 of the 150 seats in parliament, far surpassing the 25 seats won by the Labor-Green coalition and the 24 seats won by the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) of outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
The victory of PVV and Wilders shocked the Dutch public as well as Europe. "The Rutte era has ended with the uprising of right-wing populism," wrote the Dutch daily NRC .
Wilders, 60, now has the task of forming a coalition government to take power, a task that is seen as a daunting one, as rival parties have said they do not want to join a PVV-led coalition.
Observers say the most likely outcome is a coalition between the PVV and the VVD and the NSC party of centrist lawmaker Pieter Omtzigt to win 81 seats, a majority in parliament. However, they believe the negotiation process could take months.
A fan of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Mr Wilders has vowed to stop all immigration, cut the Netherlands' financial contributions to the European Union (EU) and block any new members from joining the bloc, including Ukraine.
Mr Wilders has also repeatedly said that the Netherlands should stop supplying weapons to Ukraine because the country needs weapons to defend itself.
Far-right politician and PVV party leader Geert Wilders (center) raises his glass in a toast in the Dutch parliament after elections in The Hague on November 23. Photo: Reuters
In July, Prime Minister Mark Rutte announced that he would not lead the VVD party and would not run for re-election, after the country's government collapsed due to disagreements over immigration policy.
Mr Rutte's four-party coalition failed to reach an agreement on immigration policy and the cabinet submitted its resignation to King Willem-Alexander. Mr Rutte, 56, is the longest-serving prime minister in Dutch history. He began leading the government in October 2010 and was in his fourth term when he announced his departure.
Mr Wilders' victory is a warning shot to mainstream parties across Europe ahead of European Parliament elections next June, where similar issues to those in the Dutch election, including immigration, the cost of living and climate change, are at the heart of the debate.
French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire admitted that the Dutch election showed "emerging concerns in Europe" about immigration and the economy.
Mr Wilders’ victory comes two months after the return to power of Slovakia’s anti-EU populist Robert Fico, who has pledged to halt aid to Ukraine and cut immigration.
Thanh Tam (According to Reuters )
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