Political Shift in the Netherlands Reflects Decline of Populist Parties Across Europe

Dutch voters just delivered a sharp rebuke to the far-right party that threw their country into months of political chaos. In a surprising turn, they backed a center-left party that campaigned on promises of "stability and hope" — a result that could signal broader shifts in European populism.

The far-right Freedom Party, led by Geert Wilders, lost 11 seats in the Dutch parliament after winning big in 2023. They're now expected to tie with the centrist Democrats 66 party, which will likely become the largest bloc in the legislature. This marks a dramatic fall for Wilders, whose party had secured the most seats by a wide margin just over a year ago.

Wilders actually triggered these early elections himself. Last June, he pulled his party out of the governing coalition, leaving the government in disarray. But his time in power didn't go well — he failed to deliver on his bold promises to cut asylum numbers and reshape climate policies. In fact, his party accomplished very little at all.

"The elections showed that far-right groups can be punished for failing to keep their promises," said Christoph Jacobs, a political science professor at Radboud University near the German border. "It used to seem like nothing could touch them because voters trusted their rhetoric."

The shift suggests Dutch politics will likely move toward a more moderate government. But voters didn't completely abandon the far right — smaller parties with similar views picked up many of the seats Wilders lost.

For Europe, this matters because the Netherlands has been a window into one of the continent's biggest political trends. Far-right populist parties have gained ground across Europe, with France's National Rally, Germany's Alternative for Germany, and Britain's Reform Party all topping recent polls. But their success in actually governing has been mixed.

In Germany, the far-right remains shut out of power. Spain's Vox party has grown but stays far from dominance. Britain's right-wing movements have surged and faded repeatedly, though they appear to be rising again.

The Dutch results show that harsh rhetoric alone isn't enough to keep voters loyal. Wilders was the driving force behind a coalition that often seemed dysfunctional and eventually collapsed entirely.

"I think the Netherlands got a bit tired of it all," said Rene Hendriks, a volunteer at a polling station in The Hague.

Democrats 66, named after the year it was founded, ran on a platform that seemed designed to counter far-right ideas. Their slogan "It can be done," chanted by thousands of supporters at their victory celebration, echoed Barack Obama's 2008 "Yes we can" message.

The party's leader, Rob Jetten, ran an notably optimistic campaign — the opposite of Wilders' typically pessimistic worldview, according to Jacobs.

The Dutch election demonstrates that even when far-right parties appear unstoppable, they can hit obstacles. "We thought it was almost inevitable that the far right would keep getting stronger, that they were immune," Jacobs said. "But they're not completely immune after all."