Esther Ouwehand and the Party for the Animals: A Rising Political Force

ANPL list leader Esther Ouwehand (Party for the Animals)

The Party for the Animals once had the motto: ‘You don’t compromise on your ideals’. According to party leader Esther Ouwehand, her party’s themes are “now on the main political stage”, but she does not want to participate in a coalition with parties that “take no action”. She says that in the election broadcast of News hour.

Her predecessor, Marianne Thieme, said in 2017: “Political ideals that are so important that they cannot be exchanged for a place at the controls.” Ouwehand now says: “For the PvdD, power is never a goal in itself. But if a real change of course is possible through a coalition of parties that can fundamentally solve the problems, then the PvdD will participate.”

The party won in both the municipal elections and the Provincial Council elections. For the first time, the PvdD is already in a coalition in a number of municipalities: in Groningen, Almere, Amersfoort, Arnhem, Heerlen and recently in The Hague. In Almere and Heerlen the party even governs together with the VVD.

An Ipsos poll shows that the majority of supporters want the party to also participate in national governance. More than sixty percent agree with the statement: “I would rather have the party join the government than remain in opposition.”

In the municipalities, a number of factions saw “room for a green agreement,” says Ouwehand. “That is sometimes also possible with the VVD and in exceptional cases, such as in Amersfoort, also with the CDA.”

Common thread conflicts

It was still questionable in September that Ouwehand would be party leader. A leadership struggle then broke out in the party, with the board putting Ouwehand aside. The reason: integrity reports. Ouwehand stepped down temporarily and announced this at the end of the party conference, much to the surprise of the members. A few hours after those members voted for her with an overwhelming majority of 96.3 percent.

After Ouwehand hired a lawyer, the decision was reversed and the board resigned. The new board concluded that there were no integrity violations by Ouwehand.

It was not the first time that the party tried to overthrow Ouwehand. Also in 2010, the board of the Ouwehand party did not want to be on the list of candidates. “There is discussion about the professionalization of our party,” she says. “That is the common thread of the conflicts. Ultimately, I am the leader of internal development, which the members have also spoken out in favor of. Now we have clarity about that.”

With the Party for the Animals, in 2006, for the first time in history, a party came into a national parliament that exclusively defends the interests of animals. With each election the party steadily grew larger. The PvdD now has six MPs and three senators, and has representatives in all provinces, in 29 municipal councils and in sixteen water boards.

This year, Ouwehand wrote about the state of her party: that she has come to the “bleak conclusion” that a “professionalization move is crucial”, but that it is not being made. And that the party does not meet the “basic level” that members and voters can expect.

Now she says she had to fight hard for a different course. “I think that local factions should be given space with their own autonomy. Where we are very clear about what our ideals are and fight for them and encourage others. Those factions in the country are not topdown tell them that they are not allowed to participate in the steering. We have to continue developing, that’s what I fought for internally.”

She believes that the PvdD must therefore break away from the group of people who founded the party. “Fortunately, we can now continue. The stagnation of earlier has unfortunately led to violent expressions in which the old board acted incorrectly and unlawfully.”

Resigned board

But has the conflict in the party disappeared? Nico Koffeman, in his own words the creator of the party, faction leader in the Senate and the representative of the old resigned board, is still there. She wants to join News hour didn’t say too much about it and Koffeman hasn’t spoken to him after the conflict. She does say: “We both have our own role. Overall we share the same ideals. The Senate also works according to these ideals.”

Senator Nico Koffeman also speaks in the Senate on topics that may sometimes affect his business interests. Ouwehand believes it is important that the person speaking has no interest in it. “You have to separate yourself from spokespersonship.” She says she will talk to Koffeman about it. Watch the entire conversation here:

In conversation with PvdD party leader Esther Ouwehand

2023-11-10 22:20:25
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