The Dutch centrist D66 party is projected to tie with Geert Wilders' far-right Party for Freedom in the country's general elections in an unprecedented neck-and-neck race to become the largest party.
With only a small number of votes left to be counted on Thursday morning, the projected results represent a setback for the leader of the country's far-right anti-Islam party, who had emerged as a clear winner in the country's previous elections in 2023. Wilders' Party for Freedom is forecast to lose 11 seats in the 150-seat House of Representatives, while D66, led by Rob Jetten, gains 11, according to the vote count.
The difference between the two leading parties was just over 2,000 votes nationwide, according to the vote count tallied and published by Dutch national news agency ANP and cited by Dutch media.
"It's neck and neck, a few thousand votes" difference, D66 lawmaker Jan Paternotte told national broadcaster NOS. "I don't know if it's been this close in the Netherlands before. There are often close elections ... but this time it's exceptionally close."
The results remain a momentous win for D66, whose biggest previous seat tally was 24. When the party reached that number in 2021, the leader at the time, Sigrid Kaag, danced for joy on a table at a party meeting.
Despite vying for the top spot, Wilders' party saw a sharp decline in its support in a snap election he forced when he torpedoed the outgoing four-party coalition in June in a dispute over migration. His party was the biggest in that coalition that lasted just 11 months and was marked by infighting among its members.
Jetten said Wednesday night that political leaders need to seek common ground "to form a stable and ambitious Cabinet."
The vote came against a backdrop of deep polarization in the Netherlands, a nation once famed as a beacon of tolerance.
