Painful loss for Christian parties in Dutch elections
CDA leader Bontenbal has to take a painful loss for his party. Photo ANP, Jeroen Jumelet
Western Europe
Two of the three Christian parties in the Netherlands had a huge loss in the general elections on Wednesday, according to the early exit poll.
The Christian Democratic CDA lost 10 seats and went from 15 to 5. It is understood that most CDA voters went to Nieuw Sociaal Contract, a new list from the former CDA MP Pieter Omtzigt. This new list has won 20 seats.
The Christian Union CU went from 5 to 3 seats. It is believed that the CU lost most to the new alliance of Green Left and Labour, led by former European Commissioner Frans Timmermans.
Both CDA and Christian Union were coalition parties in the 4th Rutte government in Holland after the elections in 2021. This coalition stranded this summer on the issue of immigration.
The Reformed SGP party seems to be stable on 3 seats, according to the early exit poll. This result can be corrected after all the votes are counted.
The election was won by the anti-immigration movement Partij voor de Vrijheid (PVV) led by Geert Wilders. He grew from 17 to 35 seats. That Wilders –who is known to be very critical of Islam– finished as the largest party is a shock for most others. Only the Liberal VVD has opened a small door for coalition-making to Wilders; all others have excluded him, because of his position towards the freedom of religion, especially in connection with Muslims.
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