Geert Wilders is a Dutch politician who has led the right-wing to far-right Party for Freedom (PVV) since he founded it in 2006. He is also the party's leader in the House of Representatives. Wilders is best known for his right-wing populism, anti-immigration, opposition to Islam and Euroscepticism. His views have made him a controversial figure in the Netherlands and abroad. Since 2004, he has been protected at all times by armed police.
General elections were held in the Netherlands on 22 November 2006, following the fall of the Second Balkenende cabinet. The election proved relatively successful for the governing Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) which remained the largest party with 41 seats, a loss of only three seats. The largest increase in seats was for the Socialist Party (SP), which went from nine to 25 seats. The main opposition party, the social democratic Labour Party (PvdA) lost nine of its 42 seats, while the right-liberal People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) and the progressive liberal Democrats 66 lost a considerable portion of their seats, six of 28 and three of six, respectively. New parties, such as the right-wing Party for Freedom (PVV) of former VVD MP Geert Wilders and the animal rights party Party for the Animals (PvdD) were also successful, with the PVV winning nine seats and the PvdD winning two, thereby becoming the first animal rights group to enter a European parliament.
Dion Jean Gilbert Graus is a Dutch politician. He has been an MP on behalf of the Party for Freedom since 30 November 2006.
Marie-Fleur Agema is a Dutch politician and former spatial designer, serving as First Deputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands and Minister of Health, Welfare and Sport in the Schoof cabinet since 2024. Agema previously served as a member of the House of Representatives for the far right Party for Freedom between 30 November 2006 and 2 July 2024.
Barry Madlener is a Dutch politician, who has served as Minister of Infrastructure and Water Management in the Schoof cabinet since July 2024. A member of the Party for Freedom (PVV), he was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2006. He became the PVV's leader in the European Parliament following the 2009 election. Madlener resigned from that position to again serve in the House of Representatives from the 2012 general election until 2024.
Louis Bontes is a Dutch politician and former police officer. He was a member of the European Parliament (2009–2010) and a member of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands (2010–2017) for the Party for Freedom (PVV) until 2013 and as an independent since. He was the cofounder and chairman of the political party For the Netherlands (VNL) from 2014 to 2015.
Steven Mark Ward Reed is a British politician who has served as Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs since July 2024. A member of the Labour and Co-operative Party, he is the Member of Parliament (MP) for Streatham and Croydon North, formerly Croydon North since 2012.
After the general election of 9 June 2010, a cabinet formation took place in Netherlands. This led to the swearing in of the First Rutte cabinet after 127 days. The cabinet consisted of the conservative liberal People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) and the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), with confidence and supply from the radical right Party for Freedom (PVV).
Sybrand van Haersma Buma is a Dutch politician serving as Mayor of Leeuwarden since 2019. Until 2019, he was a member of the House of Representatives from 2002 who also served as the parliamentary leader of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) from 2010 and as the leader of his party from 2012.
The first Rutte cabinet, also called the Rutte–Verhagen cabinet was the executive branch of the government of the Netherlands from 14 October 2010 until 5 November 2012. The cabinet was formed by the conservative-liberal People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) and the Christian-democratic Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) after the election of 2010. The cabinet was a right-wing coalition and had a minority in the House of Representatives but had confidence and supply from the Party for Freedom (PVV) for a slim majority with Liberal Leader Mark Rutte serving as Prime Minister. Christian Democratic Leader Maxime Verhagen served as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economic Affairs, Agriculture and Innovation.
The Party for Freedom is a nationalist and right-wing populist political party in the Netherlands. Geert Wilders is the founder, party leader, and sole member of the party.
Joram Jaron van Klaveren is a Dutch politician. As a member of the Party for Freedom he was an MP from 17 June 2010 until 21 March 2014. He subsequently was an independent until his term in office ended on 23 March 2017. He focused on matters of desegregation, employment-to-population ratio, egalitarianism and emancipation. From 24 March 2011 until 11 June 2014, he also was a member of the States-Provincial of Flevoland. He became well-known for anti-Muslim comments. In October 2018, he converted to Islam halfway through writing an anti-Islam book. After becoming a Muslim, he decided to rededicate his book to his search for religiosity and the subsequent conversion to Islam. His book titled Apostate: From Christianity to Islam in Times of Secularisation and Terror was published in both Dutch and English.
Richard de Mos is a Dutch politician and teacher who served as a member of the House of Representatives for the Party for Freedom (PVV) from 1 September 2009 to 20 September 2012. He sat on the municipal council of The Hague from 11 March 2010 to 7 June 2018, when he became an alderman in the municipal executive for the Groep de Mos/Hart voor Den Haag. He was removed through a motion of no confidence on 16 October 2019 and regained his seat in the municipal council the following 7 November. He was the lijsttrekker for Code Orange (CO) in the 2021 general election.
Early general elections were held in the Netherlands on 12 September 2012 after Prime Minister Mark Rutte handed in his government's resignation to Queen Beatrix on 23 April. The 150 seats of the House of Representatives were contested using party-list proportional representation. The People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) received a plurality of the votes, followed by the Labour Party (PvdA).
The Onafhankelijke Burger Partij was a political party in the Netherlands. It was founded by Hero Brinkman. Brinkman was elected as Member of the House of Representatives for the Party for Freedom (PVV) in 2006 and 2010. In 2012, Brinkman left the PVV after repeatedly criticising the lack of democracy within that party, as well as its negative generalisations about certain groups in society. After leaving PVV he retained his seat and founded the OBP with intention to participate in the Dutch general election of 2012. On June 9, 2012, he announced that the OBP would merge with the party Trots op Nederland to form a new party, the Democratic Political Turning Point. The merger did not occur, after Trots op Nederland announced on November 17 as their management was unsatisfied with the conditions.
The 2012 Christian Democratic Appeal leadership election was called to elect the new Leader of the Christian Democratic Appeal after incumbent Maxime Verhagen announced his retirement from national politics. Verhagen who had been the acting leader of the party since the resignation of Jan Peter Balkenende on 9 June 2010 did not stand for the leadership election. Sybrand van Haersma Buma the Parliamentary leader of the Christian Democratic Appeal in the House of Representatives beat the other candidates in the first round with 51.4% of the votes.
Vicky Maeijer is a Dutch politician representing the Party for Freedom (PVV). She has served as State Secretary for Long-term and Social Care in the Schoof cabinet since July 2024. Previously, she was a Member of the European Parliament for the Netherlands from 2014 to 2017 and a member of the House of Representatives from 2017 to 2024.
Christiaan Anton Jansen is a Dutch politician for the right-wing populist Party for Freedom (PVV). He has been serving as State Secretary for Public Transport and the Environment since July 2024, and he previously was a member of the House of Representatives between November 2019 and March 2021.
J.H. "Henk" de Vree is a Dutch politician, who served on the House of Representatives in the period 2020–21 and from 2023 onwards. There, he represents the right-wing populist Party for Freedom (PVV).
Willem Boutkan is a Dutch politician and former police officer representing the Party for Freedom (PVV) and until 2010 the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD).
