Dutch anti-Muslim populist leader Geert Wilders has abandoned his candidacy for prime minister despite his party’s dramatic victory in the 2023 election.
“I can only become prime minister if ALL parties in the coalition support it. That was not the case,” he wrote on X (previously known as Twitter).
His Party for Freedom (PVV) won the most votes last year but needed support from other parties to form a coalition.
Discussions continue with the other three parties regarding the form of the new government.
The negotiators who led the latest round of negotiations, which ended on Tuesday, are expected to submit their report to Parliament on Thursday.
“I would like a right-wing cabinet. Less asylum and immigration. Dutch people first. The love for my country and voters is great and more important than my own position,” Wilders wrote in a post on Wednesday night.
Mr Wilders, 60, has been in talks for several months with the centre-right liberal VVD, the New Social Contract (NSC) and the BBB Peasants Party, who are aiming to form a coalition government.
According to Dutch public broadcaster NOS, the leaders of these three parties announced this week that they would only move forward if all four party leaders agreed not to take on any government role.
It was not immediately clear whether there was a compromise figure for the prime minister’s post.
A parliamentary debate on the issue is scheduled for Thursday, where Kim Patters, who is leading the four-party talks, will announce the findings.
He is expected to announce that the parties are prepared to form a minority government with an “extraparliamentary cabinet,” meaning that none of the leaders of the four parties will hold cabinet positions and remain members of parliament.
It is unclear exactly who will become prime minister and who will serve as cabinet ministers. After 14 years under Mark Rutte, the next Dutch government will have a prime minister, while ministers could be appointed from both abroad and domestically.
This type of cabinet is supported by New Social Contract party leader Pieter Omzicht and liberal VVD leader Dilan Yesilgez. It would give Congress a concise list of guidelines to follow and give broad powers, but exactly how it would work remains unclear.
The 1980s was the last time that the prime minister was not elected from the largest party in the Dutch government.
According to Dutch media, 1918 was the last time a Dutch prime minister was not the leader of one of the ruling parties.
The PVV’s victory last year not only shook Dutch politics but also affected all of Europe.
The Netherlands is one of the founding members of today’s European Union.