Jetten’s D66 confirmed as election winner as  Dutch voters shift to the centre

THE HAGUE – The centrist-liberal Democrats 66 (D66), led by Rob Jetten, has been confirmed as the winner of the Dutch general election, marking a decisive shift towards the political centre after years of polarisation. 

In one of the tightest races in Dutch political history, Geert Wilders’ far-right Party for Freedom (PVV) saw its support tumble from its 2023 high, losing around a dozen seats.

With all votes counted, D66 secured 26 seats, narrowly edging out PVV, which finished on the same number but trailed by around 15,000 votes. The result gives Jetten the first mandate to form a government and places him on track to become the Netherlands’ youngest-ever prime minister.

“We’ve shown it is possible,” Jetten told jubilant supporters in Leiden on Thursday, echoing his campaign slogan. After his party nearly tripled its seats from 2023,  the young leader sees this as a sign that people want to say “goodbye to a politics of negativity”. 

Wilders, whose PVV won the previous election two years ago, saw his support collapse amid widespread refusals by mainstream parties to enter coalition talks with him. Calling the result a  “setback”, the veteran populist vowed to continue “fighting for Dutch people’s voice” from the opposition benches.

Elsewhere, the center-right People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) dodged disaster, slipping only slightly and claiming third place, while the Christian Democrats (CDA) staged a modest comeback.

The left had little to celebrate. Frans Timmermans’ GreenLeft-Labor alliance suffered heavy losses, prompting the former EU commissioner to quit on election night.

Coalition talks are expected to begin in the coming days. Jetten may be basking in  the glow of a remarkable comeback, but the corks will stay firmly in the bottle until a stable coalition is formed.