Dutch react to Rutte's election victory

(16 Mar 2017) Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte's parliamentary election victory over anti-Islam lawmaker Geert Wilders left some residents of The Hague satisfied with the result early on Thursday, in what was the year's first decisive test for populism in Europe. With most votes counted for the 150-seat legislature, Rutte's VVD (People's Party for Freedom and Democracy) had 33 seats, eight fewer than in 2012. The far-right populist Party for Freedom of Geert Wilders was second with 20 seats, five more than the last time but still a stinging setback after polls in recent months had suggested it could become the largest in Dutch politics. Wilders, who campaigned on radical pledges to close borders to migrants from Muslim nations, close mosques, ban the Quran and take the Netherlands out of the EU, had insisted that whatever the result of the election, the kind of populist politics he and others in Europe represent aren't going away. Both France and Germany have elections this year in which far-right candidates and parties are hoping to make an impact. You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/d1fccb89e0986715acf33df7a17d264a Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork