Opposing takes on the elections in the Netherlands
November 25th, 2023A left-wing commentator describes the victory of the right wing in the Netherlands as a shock for Europe, while a leading pro-government website introduces the victorious leader as a friend of Hungary.
Mandiner characterises Geert Wilders, leader of the Dutch Freedom Party which won a relative majority in the nationwide elections on Sunday as an anti-Islam and Eurosceptic politician who is a friend of Hungary. His wife is of Hungarian descent and the couple make frequent visits to Hungary. Prime Minister Orbán was among the first international leaders to congratulate Mr Wilders on his electoral success, Mandiner points out, adding that over the past few years, Geert Wilders has developed good relations with the Hungarian government and made several positive remarks on Prime Minister Orbán’s policies.
in Népszava, Mária Gál writes that the outcome of the Dutch elections was a shock for Europe. She laments that two of the three major centrist parties have given up their previous positions of firmly rejecting the possibility of forming a coalition with Geert Wilders. Nevertheless, she hopes that if the right-wing leader manages to become prime minister, he will turn out to be much more moderate than his reputation would suggest. She mentions Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni as a case in point. Despite her reputation as a far-right leader, once in government, Ms Meloni became a constructive partner of leading democratic politicians, Gál remarks.