High turnout as Dutch vote in test of ‘patriotic revolution’
Whatever the outcome of the election today, the genie will not go back into the bottle. and this patriotic revolution, whether today or tomorrow, will stay Geert Wilders, Far-right MP
— Millions of Dutch flocked to the polls on Wednesday in a test of the “patriotic revolution” promised by far-right MP Geert Wilders, with Europe closely watching the outcome amid signs his support may be waning.
Following last year’s shock Brexit referendum, and Donald Trump’s victory in the US, the Dutch vote is seen as a gauge of populism on the continent ahead of key elections in France and Germany this year.
Wilders voted in a school in The Hague, mobbed by hundreds of reporters, as final polls suggested he was trailing the Liberal VVD party of outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte. “Whatever the outcome of the election today, the genie will not go back into the bottle. And this patriotic revolution, whether today or tomorrow, will stay,” Wilders said.
Wilders has reason to be cautious however after his Freedom Party (PVV) has flopped in past votes.
“Let’s wait and see what the result will be,” he told reporters. On a warm spring day, queues began swelling early and the research institute IPSOS said turnout was already “a lot” higher than at the same point in 2012 when final participation was 74 per cent.
Amid the tussle between Rutte and Wilders, many of the 12.9 million eligible voters had been wavering between the 28 parties running.
“This is a crucial election for The Netherlands,” Rutte said as he voted. “This is a chance for a big democracy like The Netherlands to make a point... to stop this... domino effect of the wrong sort of populism.”
Wilders has pledged to close the borders to Muslim immigrants, shut mosques, ban sales of the holy Quran and leave the EU. Trumpeting the country’s economic growth and stability, Rutte is bidding for a third term as premier of the country.
In the Hague district of Schilderswijk, where most residents are from Turkish, Moroccan or Surinamese backgrounds, a steady flow of voters came and went at one polling station.
None wanted to speak openly though. “The people are feeling very delicate right now,” one man said, referring to the row with Turkey.
“You’d be surprised, but some people here will vote for the PVV. They may not support Geert Wilders, but they are fed up with the criminality, perpetuated mainly by youngsters who lack the benefit of a proper education,” said another man.