High turnout for Dutch election seen as test of European mood
Liberal leader vows to stop ‘the wrong sort of populism’
THE HAGUE // Millions of Dutch flocked to the polls yesterday in a test of the “patriotic revolution” promised by far-right MP Geert Wilders, with Europe watching amid signs that his support may be waning.
After last year’s shock Brexit referendum, and Donald Trump’s victory in the United States, the Dutch vote is seen as a gauge of right-wing populism on the continent ahead of key elections in France and Germany this year.
The Dutch election has also been gatecrashed by an explosive row with Turkey.
Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan hurled another round of abuse at The Netherlands yesterday, accusing the country of massacring more than 8,000 Bosnian Muslims at Srebrenica in 1995.
Mr 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. “Let’s wait and see what the result will be,” Mr Wilders said.
He has reason to be cautious after his Freedom Party (PVV) flopped in earlier votes.
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. There are 12.9 million eligible voters.
“This is a crucial election for The Netherlands,” Mr 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.”
Mr Wilders pledged to close the borders to Muslim immigrants, shut mosques, ban sales of the Quran and leave the European Union.
Mr Rutte is trying to secure a third term as premier of one of the largest economies in the eurozone.