Dutch Set for Youngest Premier After Pro-EU Leader Wins Election

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(Bloomberg) — In more than one way, Rob Jetten, the head of the liberal D66 party who might become the next Dutch prime minister, offers a stark contrast to Geert Wilders, the divisive anti-migrant lawmaker who heads the far-right Freedom Party.  

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The 38-year-old former minister for climate and energy could become the country’s youngest-ever premier if he succeeds in hammering out a complex coalition deal to form the next government.

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His pro-Europe D66 party emerged as one of the winners in Wednesday’s federal election, which was triggered by Wilders abruptly leaving the previous governing alliance after only 11 months over a dispute about immigration.

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“One thing is sure: millions of Dutch people have turned the page, said goodbye to a politics of negativism and hate,” Jetten said late Wednesday at the party’s election night event in the university town of Leiden near the Hague. It was a thinly veiled reference to Wilders’ heated and often inflammatory rhetoric that rattled Dutch politics over the past years.

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Jetten is staunchly pro-European Union, he supports measures to boost sustainability and clean energy and backs certain kinds of migration. In effect, he’s a clear foil for the eurosceptic Wilders, who has called for banning Muslim immigration, mosques and the Koran. 

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And Europe is watching intently to see the outcome of the election, which could have a direct impact on important policy debates happening on the continent. The Netherlands is a founding member of the EU and has traditionally played a leading role in big decisions affecting the bloc. But recent political instability and former Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s departure to the NATO defense alliance has led to a diminished influence for the Dutch within the EU’s diplomat ranks in Brussels.

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The EU is wrestling with several existential issues, which will have a massive impact on Europe for years to come, including how to fund a huge rearmament drive to make its military fit for purpose and how to navigate an increasingly protectionist world in which both China and the US are vying for influence.

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“Everyone would love to see a stable government which will govern for the next four years, which will set a direction that businesses can take into account when making their business decisions,” Marieke Blom, chief economist and global head of research at ING Groep NV, said in a Bloomberg TV interview. “That’s not what we’ve seen over the last couple of years.”

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After trailing European peers for most of the year, Dutch stocks have caught up, with the Amsterdam’s AEX index rising nearly 9% since the end of August. The premium on Dutch 10-year debt over safer German counterparts remained little changed at 15 basis points, close to the lowest in more than three years.

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Jetten’s supporters were enthusiastic after the first exit polls trickled in, which showed the D66 pulled off a late resurgence in support. The party is forecast to get 26 seats in parliament, which would nearly triple its presence in the lower house. And while the Freedom Party is projected to get the same number of seats, its isolation in parliament means it won’t have a role in government.