More than 13 million people in the neighboring country are invited to vote to elect a new parliament today. After 13 years in office, Prime Minister Rutte is no longer running. Other things are different this time too.

Things are going differently in this election: for example, current Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte will not run again. 13 years in office – that was a very long time, as Rutte himself admits. His successor at the head of the right-wing liberal VVD party, Dylan Jeselgoz, sees it the same way. She complains that her party has lost its standing in recent years.

Her predecessor Rutte lost much of his popularity due to several scandals: the negligent treatment of citizens in Groningen who had to endure earthquakes due to gas production. And because of the issue of the child care allowance, which the state wrongly demanded from thousands of families.

However, the VVD is performing well in the polls. Clearly, Yeselgoz managed to convince voters during the election campaign that she wanted renewal, even though her party had been in power for more than a decade. The 46-year-old supports a tough approach to immigration policy.

Right-wing populists Weight gain

Right-wing populist Geert Wilders no longer wants to allow asylum seekers into the country. His Freedom Party, PVV, has made significant gains in opinion polls in recent days. So powerful that without them it may not be possible to form a ruling coalition after the elections.

The 60-year-old wants to ban the Quran and close mosques. But during the election campaign, Wilders refrained from shouting inflammatory slogans and refrained from doing so – he wants to help govern.

New VVD leader Yeselgöz, unlike her predecessor Rutte, did not rule out forming a coalition with Wilders. Peter Umtzigt, on the other hand, does.

Renewal of government and administration

Umtzigt’s New Social Contract party, NSC, was founded just three months ago. The 49-year-old economist was a former member of the Christian Democratic CDA party and, like the VVD, wants to restrict immigration.

He also announced that he would reduce taxes on low-income people and increase the minimum wage and property taxes. Omtzigt is known as a worker of integrity and perseverance, who promises to fundamentally renew governance and administrative practices.

This seems to have been well received. Political scientists name more affordable housing and rents, health policy, immigration, fighting poverty and climate change as the most important issues in the election campaign.

More justice as a stated goal

Frans Timmermans was EU Commission vice-president in charge of climate issues until he returned to Dutch domestic politics in the summer – as the leading candidate in the red-green electoral alliance that did not yet exist.

The man with the white beard is Germany’s most recognizable face in the Dutch election campaign. Its stated goal is to pursue a fairer policy that puts the market at the service of the people and not the other way around.

The citizen farmer movement, BBB, wants to appeal to protest voters outside major cities such as Amsterdam, Rotterdam and The Hague who feel they have been left out. Many farmers’ anger over government environmental regulations has made the BBB big.

The Youth Party became the strongest force in the provincial elections in March. It has recently lost in the polls – perhaps to Umtzigt’s National Security Council.

The majority is right of center

Nothing is decided yet: according to election researchers, the majority of Dutch voters only make up their minds shortly before going to the polls.

In addition, particularly dissatisfied voters are very fickle: in the 2019 provincial elections they supported the right-wing populist and Eurosceptic Forum for Democracy, in the spring they supported the BBB, and in opinion polls for the parliamentary elections this was the case. First the new National Security Council party. Overall, according to experts, the center-right camp has a clear majority. The question is to what extent the parties involved want to govern together after the election.

What does not change

What won’t change in these elections: There is only a low threshold, which makes forming a government complex and often lengthy. The fourth government led by Mark Rutte was sworn in just 299 days after the elections.

This time, too, the elections will be held on a Wednesday – a consequence of the tradition of not disturbing other religious Protestants on Sunday.

In any case, it is important for Germany, which rules its neighbor to the west. The Netherlands is the fifth largest economy in the European Union and Germany’s most important trading partner within the Community. When it comes to EU fiscal policy, Berlin and The Hague are traditionally neck and neck. Both governments are committed to reducing debt and managing the economic budget.