On Thursday, the Dutch far-right urged voters to prioritise immigration as the four-day European elections began. About 370 million people will be able to cast ballots on Sunday in the majority of EU member states. Following the Dutch election, exit polls will test the predicted rise of the hard right across Europe.
The far-right Freedom Party (PVV) leader, Geert Wilders, has put an emphasis on limiting immigration and strengthening asylum regulations. People who share his view that the European Union needs tougher immigration policies, such as Simone Nieuwenhuys, voted for him.
The Dutch coalition government, which includes Wilders’ PVV, is expected to emerge victorious in the next EU elections. Unsettling for mainstream groupings like the Socialists and Democrats and the European People’s Party (EPP), surveys show that the far-right might capture a quarter of the 720 seats in the European Parliament.
When it comes to passing legislation, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, who is running for reelection, is willing to work with the far right. Giorgia Meloni, head of the post-fascist Brothers of Italy party and Italy’s prime minister, has been in negotiations with her.
At a time when the world’s geopolitical environment is in a state of flux, many are looking to the European Union (EU) for stability.
