[HIGHLIGHTS] Netherlands: Geert Wilders' far right deprived of a majority after the withdrawal of a party from coalition negotiations

The Freedom Party (PVV), identified as Islamophobic, finds itself struggling to form a government coalition. The New Social Contract (NSC) announced that it had “finished” with this round of negotiations because of a dispute over public finances.

Geert Wilders has started negotiations with three other parties, but without the NSC and its 20 seats out of 150 in Parliament, he has no chance of forming a majority government. In the highly fragmented Dutch political system, where no party is strong enough to govern alone, exiting the polls generally marks the start of months of negotiations.