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Netherlands Election Goes to the Wire as D66 and WildersPVV Finish Level in Preliminary Count

Overseas ballots will determine which party is deemed the largest and invited to launch coalition talks.

Overview

  • With 99% of votes counted, D66 and PVV each hold 26 seats, with D66 ahead by roughly 15,000 votes nationwide, according to ANP projections.
  • About 90,000 ballots from Dutch voters abroad are still to be tallied and are expected to decide which party receives the initial exploratory mandate from the monarch.
  • Most major parties have ruled out governing with Geert Wilders, leaving a PVV-led coalition unlikely in a highly fragmented parliament.
  • D66 gains about 17 seats compared with 2023 as PVV loses roughly 11 from its 2023 high; VVD ranks third with 22 seats, CDA rises to 18, and GroenLinks–PvdA falls to 20.
  • GroenLinks–PvdA leader Frans Timmermans will step down after the disappointing result, and preliminary figures put turnout at 78.4%.