Dutch Centrist Rob Jetten Claims He Won a Close Election Race

The Dutch liberal-progressive party D66 obtained the most votes in Wednesday's general election. This indicates that Rob Jetten, the party's 38-year-old leader, is on course to become the youngest prime minister in the Netherlands.

Dutch authorities declared on Friday that Geert Wilders' anti-immigration, anti-Islam Party for Freedom (PVV) could no longer win, although the last few thousand votes were still being counted. D66 is likely to be in charge of the first round of talks to form a coalition government, which usually takes months.

Experts indicate that far-right voters have shifted, even though this is the end of what was called the "most right-wing government ever." Centrist parties are receiving more support.

Although this marks the end of what was described as the “most right-wing government ever,” and centrist parties are seeing a clear rise in support, experts note that far-right voters have shifted to smaller parties, while public trust in politics remains very low at around 4%.

Dutch Election Victory for D66 Highlights Challenges of Fragmented Politics

The leader of the party that wins the election tends to be the one who starts the process of forming a coalition. It will be hard to form a government, though, because many far-right voters left Wilders and went with the far-right JA21 and Forum for Democracy.

Rob Jetten requested all the major parties to come together on Friday. He said, "Voters have made it clear that we need to collaborate together." "We want to find a majority that will work hard on problems like the economy, migration, climate change, and the housing market."

Léonie de Jonge, who studies far-right extremism at the University of Tübingen, said that the big win doesn't make the problems ahead any easier. She said, "D66 gets to start the process of forming the government, but I still think the main message of the election is that the far right is not defeated." "I think the real challenge is moving forward and forming a government in the Dutch political landscape, which is becoming more and more divided."

Dilan Yeşilgöz-Zegerius, the leader of the VVD, said multiple times during the campaign that she did not see ruling with the left as something that would happen. A coalition of the centrist Christian Democratic Appeal, VVD, and GreenLeft-Labour would have the strongest position in both of the lower and upper chambers.

D66’s Broad Appeal Wins Over Voters Across the Spectrum

Jetten’s impressive debating style, clean-cut image, and positive messaging won over enough voters for a historic win. “D66 managed to attract voters from all directions, drawing in both left- and right-leaning supporters,” said Matthijs Rooduijn, an expert on populism at the University of Amsterdam. “Many GreenLeft-Labour voters were dissatisfied with their own party leader but responded positively to Jetten and D66’s upbeat ‘It can be done’ campaign.

“At the same time, D66’s tougher stance on immigration appealed to right-wing voters from VVD, NSC, and even PVV, making its current electorate more diverse. And more critical and negative about immigration.”