Dutch Election, 15th March 2017

[Zanza]

What's the story and why is it important?
The Netherlands holds parliamentary elections on 15 March. Polls have long predicted that the anti-Islam, anti-EU Geert Wilders' populist Party for Freedom (PVV) could emerge as the country's largest party, although Wilders is thought unlikely to enter government.

After Britain's EU referendum and the election of Donald Trump in the US (read more on the connections between the two here and here), a PVV victory could be seen as fitting a developing narrative of nativist, anti-establishment movements on the rise.

The probable strong showing by the far-right Front National leader, Marine Le Pen, in May's French presidential poll reinforces this view (the Guardian's French election coverage is here). Some observers believe the EU's future is in play.

What's the political landscape and how does the system work?
There are 150 MPs in the Dutch parliament, meaning a government needs 76 seats to form a majority. No single party ever manages this and the Netherlands has been governed by coalitions for more than a century.

Parliament is elected by proportional representation in a single, nationwide constituency – which means that any party that wins 0.67% of the national vote is assured of a seat (key facts about the Dutch electoral system here).

Dutch politics have been marked in recent decades by a sharp decline in support for the three main parties of government from the centre-right and left. Their share of the vote has shrunk from more than 80% in the 1980s to a projected 40% this year.

This is a trend visible across Europe; see more about it here. In the Netherlands, it has been paralleled by a proliferation of smaller special interest parties: no fewer than 28 of them, many new, are contesting this election. As many as 14 are forecast to win seats, including eight with 10 or more MPs.

It is this fragmentation of the vote, rather than a big increase in support, that could see the PVV become the largest party. The movements that produced Brexit and Trump won about half the vote; Wilders' is forecast to get below 20% (more from the Peilingwijzer poll aggregator here).

More here:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/mar/02/dutch-parliamentary-elections-everything-you-need-to-know-brexit-vote-trump-geert-wilders

[Admiral Yi]

Lovely eyes.

[Habbaku]

Voted for the PM instead of the pretty animal-rights girl.

[The Larch]

Half those guys seem like totally bland and interchangeable people, so I guess they're great faceless politicians.

[CountDeMoney]

Who gives a fuck, the racist antisemite will win.

I mean, the MOST racist antisemite.

[derspiess]

[Richard Hakluyt]

Voted for the guy with the ridiculous hair. It is my policy now to always vote for the guy with the most outstanding hair.......................what could possibly go wrong?

[Barrister]

#3 gives off a slight Rodney Dangerfield-vibe, so I voted for him.

#5 gives a Slobodan Milosevic vibe, so I stayed away.

I didn't know Justin Trudeau's clone was running in the Netherlands.

[Crazy_Ivan80]

Who gives a fuck, the racist antisemite will win.

I mean, the MOST racist antisemite.

I doubt DENK will will much.

[Razgovory]

"I didn't vote for Trump, I don't know what you people are talking about".

[derspiess]

"I didn't vote for Trump, I don't know what you people are talking about".

[Maladict]

Half those guys seem like totally bland and interchangeable people, so I guess they're great faceless politicians.

We like our politicians bland and interchangeable. 

Doesn't look like this election is worth any global coverage though, not sure what the fuss is about.
That said my predictions have been disastrously wrong before 

[The Larch]

Half those guys seem like totally bland and interchangeable people, so I guess they're great faceless politicians.

We like our politicians bland and interchangeable. 

Doesn't look like this election is worth any global coverage though, not sure what the fuss is about.
That said my predictions have been disastrously wrong before 

There's a fuss because of Wilders, Brexit and assorted Russian-sponsored chicanery going around.

[Ed Anger]

Zoupa is going to lecture you.

[derspiess]

Zoupa is going to lecture you.

I should change my avatar.