The monstrous victory of the BoerBurgerBeweging in the Provincial Council elections caused quite a stir in the society. Both the sizable loss to governing parties and the size of the BBB profit are reminiscent of Pim Fortuyn’s great victory in the 2002 municipal elections. “I see both parallels and paradoxes.”
In 2002 Fortuyn entered the Rotterdam City Council with about 17 seats. BBB is expected to win about 17 seats in the Senate. “Where Fortuyn was the result of an urban political uprising, we now see the same kind of uprising but in the countryside,” says Leonard Ornstein, journalist and biographer of Pim Fortuyn. “Back then it was about immigrants and indigenous people, now it’s about the identity of the countryside and the Randstad should stay away from it.”
Another comparison is the disbelief about the spectacular BBB profit, says political journalist Leendert Beekman. “Everyone was expecting a win, but nobody expected it to be this big. You saw it with Fortuyn too, then.’ Ornstein: ‘I remember Fortuyn’s arrival in the beautiful civic hall of the Rotterdam City Hall. His charisma radiated to everyone, all of Holland was glued to the tube. We saw the same thing yesterday in Bathmen, we won’t easily forget Caroline van der Plas’ hand in front of her mouth.
Sobriety
Where Fortuyn managed to appeal to people as a charismatic dandy, Van der Plas knows how to reach people in a different way, according to Ornstein. “That calm is amazing,” he says. “He says what he thinks and what people want to hear. Fortuyn too.” Combined with a public dissatisfaction with the competence of incumbent politicians, it appears to be working.
After Fortuyn’s death, his party, the LPF, immediately ran into trouble. In this respect, the BBB is also facing a difficult time. The party must now deliver on what was promised to the voters. “But it’s increasingly difficult for a party that depends heavily on one person,” says Ornstein. ‘You need party organization, you need administrators. This is very complicated organizationally for them.’
It is now clear that at least six BBB candidates will have to give up their seats on the Provincial Council because they will enter the Senate. Candidates elected to the Senate are required by the party to give up their seat in the province. In any case, it concerns two members in Overijssel, four in Groningen, Gelderland, Limburg and Flevoland.
In this respect, exciting times lie ahead for party leader Van der Plas, says political journalist Leendert Beekman. ‘It will be less fun for her to be party leader because all she has to do is put out fires. To the Municipality, the Province and the Senate. Until yesterday you didn’t have that problem.’
Van der Plas has said from the outset that he is willing to compromise. ‘Compared to the Forum for Democracy, the BBB is much more constructive. We will see to what extent they are actually capable of this.’ Ornstein: ‘Now they’ve become a power factor. But let’s give it time.’
Anxious
Unlike in 2002, there was no big televised debate yesterday at the end of Election Day. Much to Ornstein’s surprise. ‘We’ve had these kinds of debates so often, why weren’t there now? It seems that the parties got a little scared». But according to Beekman, “that wasn’t even discussed.” Debates have value, Beekman thinks. “In those debates you will talk about how to train and govern.”
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Source: BNR
Fernando Dowling is an author and political journalist who writes for 24 News Globe. He has a deep understanding of the political landscape and a passion for analyzing the latest political trends and news.
