Far-right Geert Wilders announced that he is dropping his bid to become the prime minister of the Netherlands despite his election victory.
The announcement comes after the populist firebrand's potential coalition backers have refused to support him. Wilders' far-right Freedom Party (PVV) came in first during the Dutch parliamentary elections that were held late last year.
Geert Wilders Drops Bid to Become Netherlands PM
The party secured 23.5% of the vote and won 37 seats out of the available 150 in what observers called the Netherlands' "Trump moment." Following several weeks of negotiations, Wilders was unsuccessful in reaching an agreement with other parties and announced that he would no longer lead the next government.
In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Wednesday, he said that the only way he could become the prime minister of the Netherlands is if all parties in the coalition support him. He argued that that was the case.
The far-right firebrand has hoped to form a coalition with the center-right Freedom and Democracy Party (VVD) that was led by outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte as well as the newly formed New Social Contract Party, according to CNN.
Wilders is known for his radical anti-immigration, Islamophobic politics, and his staunch Euroscepticism. On Tuesday, the man overseeing the negotiations between the parties, Kim Putters, said that his expectation was that the parties would take the next step in the Cabinet formation.
The development sets up the likelihood of a technical Cabinet in which politicians and experts who are not considered allies to any of the parties would be appointed to top government posts and work closely with parliament. While Wilders' decision to not lead the government came as a surprise, he and his party will remain a significant force behind the administration, said DW News.
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Formation of a Coalition Government
On Thursday, Wilders said that it was unfair and constitutionally incorrect for him to not become the prime minister. During an interview, he told reports that as the leader of the largest parties, he said that the new PM should be him.
Following his decision to drop his bid to become the prime minister, Wilders will go back to his familiar place in the Dutch parliament. This is where he began his political career in 1998, which is a record that makes him the longest-serving lawmaker in the Netherlands.
Additionally, as part of the deal that was revealed by Putters' final report, the other three party leaders, VVD's Dilan Yesilgoz, NSC's Pieter Omgtzigt, and BBB's Caroline van der Plas, have all agreed to keep their seats in parliament instead of taking ministerial posts.
A PhD candidate at the Institute of Political Science at Leiden University, Rickvan Well, said that the Netherlands is known for having the most extensive coalition governments in Western Europe. He added that a short coalition agreement would be considered a break from the increasingly lengthy document.
However, even with the outline of a deal being released, the process of forming a government is not yet over. Experts said that they expect it would take several months of discussions on a coalition agreement and that lawmakers will face a number of issues that they would need to resolve, according to Politico.
