Dutch Parliamentary Elections Scheduled

The parliamentary elections will be held on Wednesday, March 15 (25 Esfand) to determine 150 members of the parliament of this country, and the results are expected to reflect public opinion on issues such as nationalism and immigration. Reuters reports that forecasts indicate the main competition in this election will be between two individuals: Mark Rutte, the current Prime Minister and leader of the "People's Party for Freedom and Democracy," and Geert Wilders, the leader of the "Freedom Party." Geert Wilders, a controversial Dutch politician, advocates for anti-immigration and anti-Islam policies. The report adds that Wilders, who supports the de-Islamization of the Netherlands, has almost no chance of forming a coalition government in the country, as most parties have declared they will not collaborate with the "Freedom Party" to form a coalition government. However, a victory for this party could send shockwaves through Europe. The election on Wednesday is the first of three significant elections this year in Europe that could influence the overall direction of the continent, especially following the referendum in Britain for leaving the European Union, which is seen as a barometer of public opinion in Europe. The French presidential election will be the second election following the Dutch elections, followed by parliamentary elections in Germany in September. Polls in the Netherlands indicate a close race between Mark Rutte and Geert Wilders, with some surveys reporting a three percent lead for Rutte. This comes at a time when the results of polls in the parliamentary elections and the Brexit referendum in Britain, as well as in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, differed from the actual outcomes. Recently, the issue of the Netherlands' dispute with Turkey has influenced public opinion in the Netherlands. In recent weeks, after the Netherlands prevented some Turkish politicians from holding campaign speeches on behalf of the constitutional referendum in Turkey on its soil, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan accused the country of leaning towards "Nazism" and "neo-Nazism." Reuters states that initial evidence suggests that tensions with Turkey have somewhat benefited both main parties. In this context, the Dutch parliament has banned wearing the burqa in public places.