[youngian]

How the Dutch Left blew it
Next year’s election is shaping up to be a fight between two right-wing leaders.

The Dutch Labour Party's poll ratings are tanking and it missed the chance to elect a popular leader who is a Muslim mayor of a major city. The current leader's unpopularity is more comparable with Nick Clegg than Corbyn.

Ahmed Aboutaleb was giving a lot of Dutch politicians sleepless nights earlier this year. A moderate Muslim of Moroccan descent, the mayor of Rotterdam is the most popular politician in the country.

Had he entered the fray as his party’s candidate in the Netherlands’ national elections next March, it would have upended the race. Instead, Aboutaleb dropped out of the contest for his party’s leadership before it even began, retreating from national politics altogether.

Late last week, the Labour Party chose as its leader Lodewijk Asscher, a party stalwart who served as deputy prime minister in coalition with Prime Minister Mark Rutte, a fiscal conservative.

The Labour Party has struggled ever since it decided in 2012 to join Rutte in reforming the welfare state. The economy recovered, but Labour never did. http://www.politico.eu/article/how-dutc ... k-asscher/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[youngian]

Reading that turnout is high in the Dutch elections which may not be a good sign after Brexit but appears to be in Amsterdam and the Hague. I doubt if the Turkish episode has done much good to curtail Wilders.

[bluebellnutter]

Sounding from early exit polls like the bullet has been dodged

[Malcolm Armsteen]

Exit polls (a/c BBC) showing that Rutte's mob are in the lead, with the Freedom Party (Newspeak) in the Wildersness. No word of the other 25 or so parties.

[Malcolm Armsteen]

Exit Poll (so caveats)

People's party 31 seats(-10)
Party for freedom 19 seats (+4)
Christian Democratic alliance 19 seats (+6)
Democrats 66 19 seats (+7)
Green League 16 seats (+12)
Socialist Party 14 seats (-1)
Labour Party 9 seats (-29)

[youngian]

Wilders appears to have lost seats. This is good news for all of Europe.

[bluebellnutter]

Dutch media outlet NOS is reporting that the exit poll could mean that the Labour party, one of the country’s largest has lost a record number of seats.

Christmas future.

[Malcolm Armsteen]

Wilders appears to have lost seats. This is good news for all of Europe.

Those estimates show him to be slightly up.

[youngian]

14% of the vote is about normal for a far-right party in the current political landscape. Rutte is an arsehole, however, a smarter David Cameron.

John Humphreys informs us: "Far right didn't pull off a victory so many predicted." Mainly by him and his sloppy colleagues at the BBC where Le Pen is 'favourite to win the presidency'

[Malcolm Armsteen]

With 90% of the votes counted:

People's Party for freedom and Democracy (Rutte): 33 seats (-8)
Party for freedom (Wilders): 20 seats (+5)
Christian Democratic Alliance: 19 (+6)
Democrats 66: 19 (+7)
Green Left: 14 (+10)
Socialist Party: 14 (-1)
Labour: 9 (-29)
Christian Union: 5 (NC)
Party for the Animals: 5 (+5)
50Plus: 4 (+2)
SGP: 3 (NC)
Think: 3 (+3)
Forum for Democracy: 2 (NC)

[Safe_Timber_Man]

At least he can take comfort in the fact Daily Mail readers think he's pretty awesome...

[bluebellnutter]

As I recall nobody was more butthurt about the Austrian bloke not winning than the Mail commentariat.

[mr angry manchester]

The far right's idea of "freedom" is always a strange one isn't it? More Arbeit Macht Frei, than liberalism

[Bones McCoy]

The far right's idea of "freedom" is always a strange one isn't it? More Arbeit Macht Frei, than liberalism

I saw a meme this week with a PJ O'Rourke quote on it.
The general message implied Rights are the opposite of freedom.

I found this odd coming from a chap whose country cries freedom at every opportunity, but whose constitution and its amendments are full of freedoms.

[Safe_Timber_Man]

And now their sorrow sinks in.

Particularly nasty one:

"They will flood in like rats and turn your countries into sewers"

839 green arrows. 224 red.


I seriously hope this toxic climate we're now in can be reversed. Netherlands have given me hope.