Dutch left-wing alliance elects successor to defeated Frans Timmermans
Former No. 2 Jesse Klaver steps up to take the top job.
Dutch politics
As the Netherlands moves to the center, Brussels is watching
It seems the Euroskepticism that once dominated the political mood has given way to a quiet mandate for cooperation and reform.
Centrist D66 wins Dutch election, national press agency announces
Rob Jetten is in pole position to become the new prime minister.
Santa Claus will be here before a new Dutch government, caretaker PM warns
The Netherlands faces “complicated” coalition talks after a tense election, says Dick Schoof, as the centrists and the far right fight for first place.
How to lose a Dutch election โ and still ย win oneย ย
Is it enough to come first in an election? In the Netherlands, you hear that centrist Rob Jetten won big and Geert Wildersโ far right lost a lot โ even though either one could still turn out to be No. 1 when all the votes are counted. Eva Hartog breaks down the results of the [โฆ]
How Frans Timmermansโ EU job destroyed his Dutch political career
Europe’s Social Democrats mourn the loss of their biggest hope for a comeback.
Rob Jetten: anti-Wilders, โyes we canโ candidate poised to be next Dutch PM
As liberal-progressive D66 party makes huge gains in election, former junior athlete with โpositive storyโ and โvisionโ leads race for powerEurope live โ latest updatesRob Jetten, a former junior athlete, was pictured last month in a sports magazine ru…
Wer folgt Steinmeier in Bellevue und alles รผber Rob Jetten
Friedrich Merz und Julia Klรถckner haben es angekรผndigt: 2027 soll zum ersten Mal in der Geschichte der Bundesrepublik eine Bundesprรคsidentin gewรคhlt werden. Doch wer kรถnnte das sein? Gordon Repinski erklรคrt, wie sich die Union jetzt sortiert, warum Namen wie Karin Prien und Ilse Aigner kursieren und wieso Merz die Fehler der Merkel-รra vermeiden will. Danach [โฆ]
Dutch election 2025: The winners and losers
Liberal boss Rob Jetten had a big night, lefty leader Frans Timmermans had a disaster โ and what about far-right figurehead Geert Wilders?
Rob Jetten and D66 were the Dutch electionโs big surprise. Who are they?
Meet the progressive liberals who raced past other mainstream parties in the Netherlands.
Frans Timmermans quits as Dutch center-left boss after election debacle
The former EU climate chief exits as head of the GreenLeft-Labor alliance after a poor performance in the Netherlands’ critical vote.
Dutch election is too close to call, exit poll says
Geert Wilders’ far right and the liberals of D66 are fighting it out for top spot in a nail-biting vote.
Dutch election dark horse Rob Jetten wants the Netherlands to get closer to the EU
The underdog-turned-front-runner tells POLITICO the Netherlands must embrace a more central role in Europe.
Mark Rutteโs Dutch liberals were dominant for years. Now the party is bleeding support.
It’s not easy being a European liberal.
Geert Wilders failed in government, but the far right retains its grip on the Netherlands | Cas Mudde
A media in thrall to Wildersโ party ensures its agenda is entrenched in Dutch politics and will dominate Wednesdayโs electionOn Wednesday Dutch people go to the ballot box โฆ again! This will be the ninth election for the Tweede Kamer (second chamber), …
Build more, say Dutch politicians ahead of another election. But where?
Like in many European countries, the Netherlands faces a severe housing crisis โ making where and how to build a major campaign issue.
Geert Wildersโ one-man rule โ and what that means for the Dutch
How Europeโs smallest party became the Netherlandsโ largest political force.
Dutch far-right boss Geert Wilders resumes election campaign after threats
The immigration hard-liner rejoins the race following a short pause triggered by a foiled terror plot.
Geert Wilders suspends campaign over security threat
The Dutch far-right politician, who is currently topping the polls ahead of Oct. 29 elections, said he was under threat by the same group behind the foiled plot against Belgium’s Bart de Wever.
Dutch foreign minister resigns over Israel policy, rocking caretaker government
Casper Veldkamp’s resignation further weakens the Netherlands’ government after it collapsed in June.
Netherlands bans Israeli ministers from entry over โadvocacy for ethnic cleansing in Gazaโ
Dutch government makes Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir personae non gratae.
Donโt send single, male asylum-seekers to failing Belgium, Dutch court tells government
Belgian authorities’ “indifference” toward addressing shortcomings has snowballed into a “systemic failure,” says Council of State.
A Dutch dangerous experiment in criminalizing compassion: How a parliamentary "slip-up" could create Europe’s harshest migration law
Huub Verbaten, Research
Fellow at the Clingendael Institute
Photo credit: Markus Bernet, via Wikimedia
commons
On the evening of
July 3, 2025, as Dutch parliamentarians prepared to vote on what could become
some of Europe’s most restrictive asy…
Dutch snap election set for Oct. 29
The Netherlands faces a snap election on Oct. 29 after far-right chief Geert Wilders pulled his party out of the government Tuesday and toppled the coalition. Wildersโ far-right Party for Freedom (PVV), the conservative Peopleโs Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD), and the Labour-Green-Left alliance (PvdA-GL) are tightly bunched in the no-longer-hypothetical election race, according [โฆ]
Whatโs in a vote?
That which we call a civic duty, by any other name would smell as democratic.
Geert Wildersโ party quits Dutch government
Asylum dispute topples coalition in the Netherlands.
Dutch PM to Geert Wilders: We donโt need your permission to criticize Israel
“It is not the case that we listen to, say, one party leader with regard to the steps we take,” Dick Schoof said.
Netherlands delays nitrogen emissions target, defying its own judges and the EU
Dutch government buys time for farmers but tests the limits of domestic courts and EU environmental law.
Netherlands starts inquiry into Mozambique gas plant massacre
A TotalEnergies LNG project in Africa was put on hold after a POLITICO report on human rights abuses.
Looking at Trump, Europeโs far right vows to โreconquerโ the continent
โOur friend Trump, the Trump tornado, has changed the world in just a couple of weeks,โ Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbรกn tells far-right rally in Madrid.
Elon Muskโs Tesla showroom defaced with swastikas in the Netherlands
Tech billionaire continues to attract vitriol after his controversial salute at Donald Trump’s inauguration party.
Romanian government fumes after national treasures stolen in Dutch museum heist
Bucharest will send a “firm message” to the Dutch authorities, PM says.
Dutch coalition survives (for now) after chaos fueled by fuming Geert Wilders
The Netherlands’ most right-wing government ever was rocked by the fallout from violent clashes between locals and Israeli football fans.
Fragile Dutch government teeters as minister resigns and Geert Wilders rages
Leaders of the Netherlands’ four governing parties are set to hold urgent talks Friday as turmoil builds in The Hague over response to football violence.
Amsterdam football violence exposes first cracks in Dutch government
The Netherlandsโ new four-party coalition faces first unity test after locals attacked Israeli soccer fans.
Amsterdam on edge after violence against Israeli football fans
Residents say city has become more tense amid rightward shift in Dutch politics and pro-Palestinian protests
Dutch prime minister to skip COP29 after Amsterdam football violence
PM Dick Schoof says “major social impact” of last week’s clashes will keep him from climate summit in Azerbaijan.
Dutch capital declared โhigh-riskโ area after attack on Israeli football fans
Amsterdam imposes emergency measures after supporters of Israelโs Maccabi Tel Aviv football team were assaulted Thursday night.
โWho is going to pick our olives?โ Greek PM warns against being too tough on migration
Kyriakos Mitsotakis says his country needs workers as EU leaders tussle over asylum strategy.
Dutch government announces โstrictest asylum policy everโ
Netherlands will ask the European Commission for an opt-out on EU asylum and migration policies.
Wopke Hoekstra nominated as Dutch EU commissioner
Current climate commissioner to return to Brussels, and The Hague wants him to get a financial or economic portfolio.
Attack on Donald Trump strikes fear into European hearts
Fears of political violence are simmering just beneath the surface in Europe, too.
Rutte: Iโd give myself a 6 or 6.5 out of 10 as PM
Rutte cited a number of missteps that tarnished his premiership.
For Geert Wilders, โhousingโ is code for โimmigrationโ
The Dutch firebrand promised to cut waiting lists by freezing out foreigners.
Wilders U-turns on deputy PM nominee reportedly suspected of Mossad tiesย
The erstwhile nominee, Gidi Markuszower, complains he is being given fewer rights than the “average terrorist.”
Wilders coalition talks yield new hard-right Dutch government
Euro-skeptic Geert Wilders could be sending his new prime minister to Brussels on his first day at work.
โFarmer Wants a Wifeโ contestant to become Dutch agriculture minister
Femke Wiersma married the dairy farmer she met on the TV reality show before going into politics.
Court convicts 6 over Dutch crime reporterโs murder
Killers ambushed and shot Peter R. de Vries with “staggering” ease.
Dutch exit poll: Labor-Green alliance narrowly beats far-right Wilders in EU election
Early poll suggests Wilders’ party on track for seven seats in European Parliament, but Labour-Green alliance is set for eight.
The Dutch kick off EU election
European Parliament election officially gets going, with Geert Wilders’ far-right party expected to do well.
Surrounded by colonial history, Wilders campaigns against migration before EU vote
In his first and only offline campaign event, Dutch radical right politician Geert Wilders vows to change the EU from within.
Who is Dick Schoof?ย 8ย things to know about the new Dutch PMย
Nicknamed โTricky Dickโ, the new head of the Netherlandsโ far-right-led government is not afraid of bending the rules.ย
Geert Wilders eyes former spy chief Dick Schoof as Dutch prime minister
Press conference Tuesday afternoon set to herald beginning of the end of Mark Rutte’s long reign atop Dutch politics.
New Dutch government drives wedge through EU liberals
Valรฉrie Hayer, the leading candidate for Emmanuel Macron’s party in France, slammed decision by Mark Rutte’s party to join Geert Wilders.
Geert Wildersย grins: โThe sun is going to shine again in the Netherlandsโ
Dutch coalition talks finally conclude, with The Hague now set for its most right-wing government in recent history.
How Geert Wilders turned all corners of Dutch society into far right voters
The taboo of voting for populist, anti-immigration parties is fading.
Far-right Geert Wilders announces new Dutch government deal
But there’s still no pick to be the new prime minister, hinting at ongoing disagreement.
Geert Wilders says heโs in touching distance of forming right-wing government in Netherlands
Negotiations have dragged out since Wildersโ election win last November.
After Geert Wilders gives up, whatโs next for the Netherlands?
Ruling with a far-right party is no longer taboo as Dutch politicians agree an outline deal.
Dutch farmers back Wilders as centrist nightmares come true
Far-right radical seen as last chance to avoid EU pollution rules.
Von der Leyenโs Ukraine flip-flop shows sheโs walking an election tightrope
An unprecedented election campaign period is set to become a challenge for the European Commission president.
Geert Wilders goes back to the drawing board
Far-right leader is still miles away from becoming Dutch PM after coalition talks hit the rocks.
Geert Wilders left stranded as Dutch coalition talks collapse
Shock exit by kingmaker Pieter Omtzigt torpedoes the negotiations, leaving far-right leader in a stew.
Russian police detain Western journalists at protest by soldiersโ wives
Dutch Foreign Minister Hanke Bruins Slot described the detentions as โvery concerning.โ
Europeโs Greens are on the ropes
Farmers’ ire and a right-wing surge is testing the EUโs climate goals. And the Greens that backed them are teetering.
Geert Wilders has a serious problem
Dutch coalition talks have hit a stumbling block: migration.
Mark Rutte makes humblebrag pitch for NATO top job
Dutch PM has thrown his hat into the ring to become the next secretary-general โ he just doesn’t want people to think he’s too eager.
Europeโs far right flexes anti-Brussels muscles as it opens EU campaign
Anti-EU hardliners gathered in Florence to kick off their 2024 election drive.
โClash of civilizationsโ looms over EU elections
Far-right parties are cashing in on decades of campaigning against Islam and migration, as they move to the center ground.
The most powerful people in Europe (for better or worse)
Presented by Avaaz.
Donald Tusk
Overall No. 1 โ Poland
Geert Wildersโ coalition scout resigns over fraud scandal
Gom van Strien, who was tasked with identifying potential coalition partners, was accused of misdeeds by his former employer.
Arab states condemn Wilders for push to relocate Palestinians to Jordan
Jordan, the Palestinian Authority and the Arab League criticize Dutch far-right politician who won this week’s election in the Netherlands.
Rutteโs party wonโt join Geert Wilders in Dutch coalition, new leader says
But VVD leader Dilan Yeลilgรถz is willing to support a center-right government from the sidelines.
Geert Wilders: who is the anti-Islam politician leading the largest Dutch party? โ video profile
After 20 years on the extreme fringe of Dutch politics, Wilders’ far-right Freedom party has emerged as the most popular party in the country’s polls. Wilders is widely known for his harsh anti-immigration and anti-Muslim politics. But who is he? Geert…
Geert Wilders stuns with far-right election victory in the Netherlands
Presented by Equinor.
Geert Wilders seeks coalition allies after seismic Dutch election
Coalition talks are set to begin Friday, but will anyone be willing to work with the election’s far-right winner?
The Guardian view on the Dutch election: Europe must learn from a lurch to the far right | Editorial
Geert Wildersโ unforseen victory will not necessarily make him prime minister. But it is another wake-up call for progressive parties across the continentUntil this week, no Dutch party associated with the far right had ever won more than 20% of the vo…
The Dutch Trump: Who is Geert Wilders and what does he want?
The far-right, anti-Islam Euroskeptic who won Wednesday’s election will need a few friends to become PM.
[Analysis] How Wilders’ Dutch extremism goes way beyond Islamophobia
Without losing sight of his pervasive Islamophobia, it is essential to note Geert Wilders’ far-right extremism extends to other issues that could drastically alter the nature of Dutch politics โ and end its often constructive role in advancing EU polic…
Putinโs propagandists cheer Geert Wildersโ Dutch election win
Moscow’s ultranationalists hail far-right firebrand as a ‘supporter of Russia.’
Timmermans eyes opposition role after far-right win in Dutch election
‘It is clear that a lot of people expect solutions from the right,’ former EU climate chief says after Geert Wilders’ victory.
Euroskeptics cheer shock Wilders win in Dutch election
‘More and more countries within the European Union are contesting the way it works,’ French National Rally leader Marine Le Pen says.
Geert Wilders is the EUโs worst nightmare
The far-right Dutch election winner, who backs โNexit,โ will be no friend to Brussels.
Far-right leader Geert Wilders wins Dutch election: Exit poll
Wilders wants to ban mosques and leave the EU. ‘Voters are fed up,’ he says.
Dutch election is wide open as voting begins
Far-right leader Geert Wilders is surging in the polls. He’s up against EU big beast Frans Timmermans, popular outsider Pieter Omtzigt, and former refugee Dilan Yeลilgรถz. Anyone could win.
Dutch election: Far-right surge gives Geert Wilders late boost
One poll puts the anti-Islam euroskeptic in joint first place ahead of Wednesday’s knife-edge vote.
Dutch far-right leader Thierry Baudet attacked again, party says
It’s the second time the Forum for Democracy leader has been hurt on the campaign trail in as many months, with PM Mark Rutte calling the incident ‘totally unacceptable.’
Dutch on brink of electing first female leader
Dilan Yeลilgรถz tells POLITICO she wants to cut immigration. With Wednesdayโs election still wide open, she might just get the chance.
How to watch the Dutch elections like a pro
POLITICOโs guide to what you need to know about the vote in the Netherlands on November 22.
Pieter Omtzigt: centrist outsider who wants to remake Dutch politics in his own image
The brand new NSC party is top of the polls as the election nears and has a charismatic leader famed for uncovering official wrongdoingThe party that has swept to the forefront of Dutch politics needs no symbol: instead, it has the face of founder Piet…
Timmermans hunts for allies in knife-edge Dutch election race
The EU heavyweight is trying to fill the Rutte-shaped hole in The Hague.
Online vitriol could undo decades of political progress, warns Dutch deputy PM
Sigrid Kaag is latest high-profile female politician to quit, citing years of โhate, intimidation and threatsโNearly two years after Sigrid Kaag was catapulted into the highest ranks of Dutch politics, police keep a constant watch over her home. Camera…
Rutte doesnโt rule out becoming next head of NATO
Being NATO secretary-general would be ‘very interesting,’ outgoing prime minister says on Dutch radio.
Frans Timmermans urges European left to unite against rightโs climate backlash
Dutch politician and former EU deputy criticises โastonishingโ policy U-turns by countries including UKFrans Timmermans, the former EU heavyweight who has returned to Dutch politics to fight the countryโs election in November, has called for the Europe…
Benelux battle: How 3 ex-PMs could end up jostling for jobs
Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg often punch above their weight in Brussels, claiming powerful EU roles. That may be about to change.
Ex-Pakistani cricketer gets 12-year prison sentence for putting bounty on Geert Wildersโ head
‘The words used by the suspect are unambiguous: He promises a significant amount of money to perform a specific act, namely killing Wilders,’ court says.
โNot a done dealโ: Dutch pick for EU climate job faces tough Parliament grilling
Left-leaning lawmakers aren’t keen on Wopke Hoekstra as EU commissioner for climate.
Frans Timmermans resigns from key EU Commission job in bid to become next Dutch PM
Frans Timmermans, the man tasked with spearheading the EU’s ambitious climate policies, has resigned from the Commission to return to Dutch politics in the hope of becoming the country’s next prime minister.
Timmermans to quit as EU climate czar as he returns to Dutch politics
The Green Deal commissioner was chosen to lead a left-wing alliance in the Netherlands’ November election.