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Yet another country has fallen to the far right. The Dutch parliamentary elections were held on 22 November, resulting in a surprise victory for Geert Wilders’ Party for Freedom (PVV). With 37 seats out of 150, twenty more than in the previous elections, Wilders emerged far ahead of the political alliance formed by the Labour Party (PvdA, centre-left) and the Green Left (GL, left), led by former European Commissioner Frans Timmermans, which took just 25 seats (15.5 percent of the vote). The People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD, centre-right) of outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte came third with 24 MPs (15.2 percent).
While there is still plenty to play for – the Party for Freedom still has to find allies to form a coalition capable of governing – the triumph of the radical right, embodied by the Eurosceptic and Islamophobe Wilders, has shaken the whole of Europe. With just one year to go before the European elections, the PVV's triumph has heightened concerns that far-right populists could enter the European Parliament with a vengeance.
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