Netherlands: D66 wins election, Wilders second-rate and isolated!

Netherlands: D66 wins election, Wilders second-rate and isolated!

On November 3, 2025, the final election results of the parliamentary elections in the Netherlands were announced. The government led by top candidate Rob Jetten from the D66 (Democrats 66) party won the election and secured 26 of 150 seats in parliament. This represents a historic result, as D66 and Geert Wilders' anti-Islamic party PVV both won 26 seats, but D66 received fewer votes than the PVV. The full counting of votes, including postal votes from abroad, was followed by the Dutch news agency ANP.

The approximately 135,000 postal votes played a crucial role, 90,000 of which were cast by Dutch people living abroad. While D66 was able to build an unassailable lead on Friday before the official announcement, it remains uncertain whether the PVV under Wilders will be part of the new coalition. Cooperation between D66 and the PVV is excluded by all major parties, which severely limits Wilders' government ambitions.

Political landscape and coalition options

The current political climate is characterized by strong fragmentation. D66 would theoretically have the opportunity to win another seat, which would push the PVV into second place. However, the next coalition government is likely to include at least four parties in order to secure a stable majority of 65 of the 128 possible MPs.

After the explosive election result, Geert Wilders did not acknowledge his defeat and raised doubts about the legitimacy of the election result. However, electoral authorities have dismissed these concerns as unfounded. This is particularly notable since the PVV lost eleven seats compared to the last election in 2023 and Wilders' party was previously part of a coalition that was broken off after eleven months. There are 14 parties represented in the new parliamentary constellation, which poses major challenges for the formation of a government.

Reactions and outlook

Rob Jetten celebrated the D66 election victory by distributing cakes, while coalition talks could be delayed due to the unclear meeting results. Wilders is urging that discussions be postponed until there is final clarity on the election results. The official final result will finally be announced on November 7, 2025, which could fuel further speculation about the possible composition of the new government. The electoral system in the Netherlands is characterized by proportional representation without a five percent threshold, which leads to an abundance of parties and further complicates coalition formation.

The next regular parliamentary election in the Netherlands is scheduled for 2029. The current political trend shows that the governing parties only reach around 23.4% of the vote, highlighting the need for a broad coalition. Given the challenges, it remains to be seen what political directions the new government will choose and whether Wilders will be able to influence the coming decisions in any way.

For further information about the elections and the political situation in the Netherlands, you can read the reports from oe24, Zeit and PolitPro can be viewed.