Controversial, far-right politician Geert Wilders could be on track to become the Netherlands’ next prime minister following a surprise victory in general elections overnight.
Preliminary figures showed that Wilders’ right-wing Freedom Party (PVV) has gained 37 seats, putting it ahead of the GreenLeft-Labour party (GL/Pvda) alliance with 25 seats and the liberal-conservative Freedom and Democracy Party (VVD) with 25 seats.
The result marks a dramatic change in political fortunes for Wilders, whose PVV party won just 17 seats in snap elections in 2021, following the collapse of a coalition government led by Mark Rutte.
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Wilders’ controversial policies include an extreme clampdown on immigration; a referendum on the Netherlands leaving the European Union, or “Nexit”, and Islamophobic measures including the suppression of Islamic schools, the Koran and mosques, although he cannot put the latter ambition in motion under Dutch laws protecting freedom of religion and expression.
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Wilders made it clear in his victory speech that he expects his party to play a key role in governing the country, although it is not certain he will be able to build the 76-seat coalition required to take power in the 150-seat parliament.
“The PVV can no longer be ignored… We will govern,” Wilders said in his victory speech, adding: “The Netherlands has hope… the people of the Netherlands will get their country back and the tsunami of refugees and immigrants will be limited.”
Wilders created his right-wing PVV party in 2006. His extreme views on hot topics such as immigration have led to him being previously dismissed as a provocative, fringe politician with little real political clout.
His rhetoric has led to a number of attempts on his life and he has had 24-hour armed police protection since 2004, following a foiled attack in the Hague.
The win has sent shockwaves across the Netherlands and Europe.
Right-wing leaders and politicians rushed to congratulate Wilders.
Populist Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban posted on X “the winds of change are here”; Italy’s hard-right Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini said the victory was a sign that “a new Europe is possible”, and French far-right politician Marine Le Pen said the win showed “a growing attachment to the defence of national identities.”
Few mainstream politicians have commented as yet.
Bruno Le Maire, Finance Minister in President Emmanuel Macron’s centrist government, told news radio station France Info that Wilders’ victory was “the consequence of all the fears and concerns that have been manifesting in Europe for several years.”
“Fears about the war in Ukraine, fears about the risk of European economies downgrading compared to China and the United States and fears about migratory flows, this translates into extremist outbreaks throughout Europe,” he said.
He dismissed a suggestion that France could experience a similar shift to right in future elections, saying: “The Netherlands is not France.”