A Guide to the Dutch Elections 2025

October 24, 2025

On October 29, people in the Netherlands will vote in the national snap elections. The vote comes earlier than planned because the Dutch government fell earlier this year.

How the Government Is Formed

In the Netherlands, the government is made up of the King, the Prime Minister, and the Council of Ministers. The Netherlands uses a system called proportional representation. This means that parties get seats in parliament based on the number of votes they receive. Because it is rare for a single party to win more than half of the seats, parties must work together to form a coalition government. After the elections, the parties negotiate to agree on which policies they will pursue together. Once the coalition is formed, the members of the parliament appoint the ministers and elect the Prime Minister, usually the leader of the largest party in the coalition. This process ensures that the government represents a majority of parliament and can effectively pass laws.

The Fallen Government

Normally, elections for the House of Representatives (Tweede Kamer) are held every four years. But this year’s election has been anticipated because the cabinet led by Prime Minister Schoof, which was formed in July 2024 after the November 2023 election, collapsed in June 2025.

The Schoof government was made up of four parties:

Party for Freedom (PVV)
People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD)
New Social Contract (NSC)
Farmer–Citizen Movement (BBB)

From the start, there were disagreements among the parties. The main conflict came when Geert Wilders, leader of the PVV, proposed strict rules for immigration and asylum. His plans included closing the borders to asylum seekers, deporting migrants who have committed crimes, sending back Syrian refugees, putting a stop to family reunification, and cutting housing help for refugees.

The other parties in the coalition, VVD, NSC, and BBB, did not support the plan. As a result, Wilders decided to pull his party out of the government, causing the coalition to lose its majority. Prime Minister Dick Schoof and his ministers then resigned, but they are still in charge in a temporary (caretaker) role until a new government is formed after the election.

Parties in the 2025 Elections

A total of 27 parties will take part in the October election. The main ones are:

PVV (Party for Freedom): far-right, anti-immigration
GroenLinks–PvdA: alliance of the GreenLeft and Labour Party, centre-left
VVD (People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy): liberal, centre-right
NSC (New Social Contract): centrist
D66 (Democrats 66): social-liberal, progressive
BBB (Farmer–Citizen Movement): right-leaning, supports farmers
CDA (Christian Democratic Appeal): centrist to centre-right
SP (Socialist Party): left-wing

Smaller parties like Volt, the Party for the Animals (PvdD), and JA21 will also join the race and could matter in the final coalition.

Political Trends

Polls show that Geert Wilders’ PVV is still very popular and could win more seats. The GroenLinks–PvdA alliance is also doing well and may become the main challenger. The VVD, NSC, and BBB are also expected to win a fair number of seats. Because of the number of parties competing, it is unlikely that one party will win the majority, so another coalition government will have to be formed.

Who Can Vote?

To vote in the Dutch elections, you must:

Be a Dutch citizen
Be 18 years or older on election day
Be registered in a Dutch municipality

If you meet these rules, you will get a stempas (voting pass) in the mail before the election, which allows you to vote.

This article will be updated as the results come in and as the new government takes shape.