Centrist D66 and the far-right Freedom Party (PVV) are closely competing for the top position in the Dutch election, each currently holding 17% of the vote. Neither party can achieve a majority alone in the 150-seat parliament and will require coalition partners. Forming a government in the Netherlands usually takes a long time, and this scenario appears to be no different.
If the PVV becomes the largest party, it will try to create a coalition. However, other mainstream parties have chosen not to work with PVV leader Geert Wilders after he previously brought down a coalition government. This exclusion limits the options for a Wilders-led government due to these parties holding about two-thirds of the seats.
D66 is considering forming a broad coalition that includes the pro-business VVD Party, the left-wing Greens-Labour, and the conservative Christian Democrats (CDA), which could achieve a comfortable majority of 86 seats. However, collaboration is challenging because the VVD is hesitant to work with Greens-Labour over tax and migration issues. Another option for D66 is to ally with more right-leaning parties, but this also poses difficulties in securing a majority.
With information from Reuters