20 March 2010 / REUTERS, AMSTERDAM
The Dutch Labour Party (PvdA) has widened its lead in the latest opinion poll ahead of June’s parliamentary election, apparently driven by a change in the party’s leadership.
Labour added seven seats to 33 in the new Politieke Barometer poll released late Thursday night, five ahead of the Christian Democrats (CDA) of Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende. The anti-immigrant Freedom Party of populist Geert Wilders stood third on 23 seats. Labour surged in the month since it brought the coalition government down over the Dutch mission in Afghanistan. It has gained 12 seats over the period in both the Politieke Barometer and Maurice de Hond polls and leads both. But its biggest gains have been over the last week, since former leader. Wouter Bos stepped aside in favor of former Amsterdam Mayor Job Cohen. Cohen, who stepped down as mayor to lead Labour into the election, draws three times the support of his nearest challengers in preference polls for prime minister. For the first time this election cycle, the poll also indicated a three-party coalition government might be possible, rather than one with four or even five parties. A coalition of Labour, the Christian Democrats and the centrist D66 could form a majority government, although such a combination has been seen as unlikely.
