Dutch populists win shock election
Anti-immigrant party wins most votes in parliamentary elections just days after Utrecht shooting
A new anti-immigrant populist party has made sweeping gains in Dutch regional elections, following a last-minute boost in the polls driven by this week’s terrorist shooting in Utrecht.
Launched in 2016 by 36-year-old Thierry Baudet, the Forum for Democracy (FvD) is on course to win 12 seats in the Dutch upper house, making it the largest party in the senate along with that of the prime minister, Mark Rutte.
“A proponent of Dutch-first cultural, social and economic policies”, The Guardian says “Baudet wants improved relations with Russia, opposes the euro, and has called for the Netherlands to leave the EU – although he has since said he will see how Brexit plays out first”.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
France 24 says “the flamboyant former academic is known for controversial statements such as ‘women in general excel less in jobs and have less ambition’”.
Campaigning on a platform of more direct democracy, less immigration and climate change denial, Baudet adopted classic populist tactics which have delivered gains across Europe and around the world in recent years.
Accusing successive governments of failing to maintain strict border controls, following the results he said the “stupidity and arrogance” of the elites had been punished.
“We stand here in the rubble of what was once the most beautiful civilisation,” he told supporters. “We won because the country needs us.”
“Dutch right-wing populism, dominated for a decade by Wilders and his Freedom Party, has been transformed in the past two years by the rapid growth of the Forum for Democracy,” reports Politico.
The news site says “Baudet shocked establishment parties this week by blaming the government's migration policy for the Utrecht attack just hours after the shooting. All other parties had suspended campaigning.”
Three people were killed and three more seriously injured on a tram in Utrecht when Turkish-born suspect Gokmen Tanis opened fire earlier this week.
While the motivation of the shooter is not yet known, the BBC reports that “a terrorist motive is being seriously taken into account”.
“This is a combination of an honour killing and a half-terrorist motive,” Baudet told supporters at a rally, Reuters reported.
Pollsters who had not predicted the FvD would make such gains have suggested the attack could have led a last-minute surge to the party.
The Times says “its success will ring alarm bells across European capitals little more than a month before European elections, at which populist parties are expected to make gains”.
However, The Guardian says in the Netherlands “despite the populists’ improved performance it will not easily be translated into increased clout in the upper house, since the other parties have pledged not to work with them”.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Cicada-geddon: the fungus that controls insects like 'zombies'
Under The Radar Expert says bugs will develop 'hypersexualisation' despite their genitals falling off
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
'Voters know Biden and Trump all too well'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Is the Gaza war tearing US university campuses apart?
Today's Big Question Protests at Columbia University, other institutions, pit free speech against student safety
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
Myanmar: the Spring Revolution and the downfall of the generals
Talking Point An armed protest movement has swept across the country since the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi was overthrown in 2021
By The Week Staff Published
-
Israel hits Iran with retaliatory airstrike
Speed Read The attack comes after Iran's drone and missile barrage last weekend
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Is there a peaceful way forward for Israel and Iran?
Today's Big Question Tehran has initially sought to downplay the latest Israeli missile strike on its territory
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Sudan on brink of collapse after a year of war
Speed Read 18 million people face famine as the country continues its bloody downward spiral
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
How powerful is Iran?
Today's big question Islamic republic is facing domestic dissent and 'economic peril' but has a vast military, dangerous allies and a nuclear threat
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
US, Israel brace for Iran retaliatory strikes
Speed Read An Iranian attack on Israel is believed to be imminent
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
How green onions could swing South Korea's election
The Explainer Country's president has fallen foul of the oldest trick in the campaign book, not knowing the price of groceries
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Ukraine's battle to save Kharkiv from Putin's drones
The Explainer Country's second-largest city has been under almost daily attacks since February amid claims Russia wants to make it uninhabitable
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published