New Dutch government under centrist Jetten takes power
Jetten pulled off a stunning election win in October to dethrone the far-right party led by firebrand politician Geert Wilders
A new Dutch government took power on Monday, with 38-year-old centrist Rob Jetten sworn in as the country’s youngest-ever prime minister and the first openly gay one.
Jetten pulled off a stunning election win in October, coming from behind to dethrone the far-right Freedom Party (PVV) led by firebrand politician Geert Wilders by a razor-thin margin.
Jetten’s D66 has teamed up with the centre-right CDA party and the liberal VVD to form a coalition, but will fall nine seats short of a parliamentary majority with only 66 seats.
The parties took 117 days to form their coalition – much less than the 223 days taken to form the previous government.
After his election victory, Jetten declared that it was possible to beat populist movements “if you campaign with a positive message for your country”.