Political observers keeping eye on Netherlands PM with voting set to end

Three days of voting are set to end with election results in the Netherlands on Wednesday, with political observers keeping an eye on whether Prime Minister Mark Rutte can add to his already 10 years in office.

Voting started on Monday and was stretched over three days to help alleviate concerns about COVID-19 contagion as people cast their ballots for the 150 members of the country’s legislature.

Analysts are of the opinion that Rutte could benefit in the race because his government was generally seen as having performed well against the coronavirus.

That said, his margin of support on this topic has shrunk in recent months, and there was some anger about the recent lockdowns.

Rutte was also currently serving only as an acting prime minister because his government had to step down recently amid a scandal about parents forced to repay child care benefits, sometimes erroneously.

If he succeeds, it remains to be seen whether he can rebuild his existing coalition, which consists of his centre-right People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy, the centre-right Christian Democratic Appeal, the conservative Christian Union, and the liberal D66.