Close race in the Netherlands
Green-Left alliance narrowly ahead of Wilders’ party in EU elections
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The European elections have begun, and the Dutch are among the first to cast their votes. Post-election polls put the red-green coalition of former EU Commissioner Timmermans just ahead of Wilders' far-right party.
The European elections in the Netherlands are expected to be close. A forecast published on public television in the evening puts Geert Wilders' right-wing populist Party for Freedom (PVV) with 7 seats and the coalition of the social democratic Labour Party and GroenLinks with 8 of the 31 seats. The red-green coalition is led by former EU Commissioner Frans Timmermans. The official result is not expected until Sunday evening.
The PVV became the strongest party in the parliamentary elections around six months ago. It previously only had one mandate in the EU Parliament, so it could now expect significant gains. Opinion polls by the Clingendael think tank suggest that dissatisfaction with the EU is also increasing in the Netherlands. Most citizens are in favor of remaining in the union, but at the same time want more independence.
In the past, Wilders had campaigned for the Netherlands to leave the EU. Although his party's manifesto for the European elections does not include a call for a so-called Nexit, the party is campaigning with the promise of wanting to change the EU from within. These plans coincide with those of many other ultra-right parties in Europe.
In Estonia, citizens have been able to cast their vote over six days since Monday, but the Netherlands are the first EU country to start with a single voting day. Ireland and the Czech Republic will follow on Friday, and the rest of the union will do so over the weekend, including Germany next Sunday. The election results should be available on Sunday evening after the polls close. Around 400 million eligible voters in the European Union are called upon to vote for the future 720 members of the EU Parliament.
