Dutch voting in election seen as a barometer of populism

THE HAGUE - Prime Minister Mark Rutte and anti-Islam lawmaker Geert Wilders cast Wednesday's Dutch parliamentary elections as a litmus test for populism in Europe, only months ahead of crucial votes in France and Germany.

As the nation went to the voting stations on a bright spring morning, two-term premier Rutte's right-wing VVD party was leading in the latest polls, with the anti-Islam Party for Freedom of firebrand lawmaker Geert Wilders a close second.

Coming after last year's surprise British vote to leave the European Union and the election of US President Donald Trump, Rutte hopes to slow the momentum of what he called the "wrong sort of populism".

"This is a chance for a big democracy like the Netherlands to make a point to stop this toppling over of the domino stones of the wrong sort of populism," Rutte said after he voted.

Despite positive poll results in recent days, Rutte was wary of the results. "There is still a risk that we wake up on Thursday morning and seeing that Geert Wilders is leading the biggest party," he said.

Wilders sought to dampen expectations for himself but insisted that whatever the result of Wednesday's election, the kind of populist politics he and others in Europe represent will be here to stay.

"The genie will not go back into the bottle. People feel misrepresented," he said, predicting this would show in elections later this year in France and Germany, too.

"Despite what the elite wants, politicians are getting strong who have a totally different concept of what the people want them to do," he said.

'A safe custodian'

Rutte has framed the election as a choice between continuity and chaos, portraying himself as a safe custodian of the nation's economic recovery, while casting Wilders as a far-right radical who would not be prepared to take tough decisions.

The chance of Wilders becoming leader in this country is small as all mainstream parties, including Rutte's VVD, have ruled out working with Wilders.

Wilders' one-page election manifesto includes pledges to close borders to immigrants from Muslim nations, shuttering mosques and banning the Quran, as well as taking the Netherlands out of the European Union.

The final days of campaigning were overshadowed by a diplomatic crisis between the Dutch and Turkish governments over the refusal to let two Turkish ministers address rallies about a constitutional reform referendum next month that could give President Recep Tayyip Erdogan more powers. It showed Rutte as refusing to bow to pressure from outside, a stance which has widespread backing in the nation.

The 12.9 million Dutch voters can cast their ballots until 9 pm (4 am Beijing time).