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Opposition party JA21 hopes that the Rutte cabinet will become more dependent on the support of this right-wing party after the upcoming elections in March. “We have to make sure that we become so strong that Rutte is handed over to JA21. That he can no longer ignore us,” said party leader Eerdmans in Rotterdam at the presentation of the election programs for the approaching provincial elections in almost two months.
The newly elected members of the Provincial Council elect a new Senate and that composition is crucial for the strength of the current cabinet of VVD, D66, CDA and ChristenUnie. A new law cannot be introduced if the Senate does not agree to it.
The Rutte cabinet has not had a majority for years, but now often turns to left-wing parties such as PvdA and GroenLinks and sometimes to JA21 for the necessary support.
Tipping point
Eerdmans hopes that this path “on the left” will soon no longer be possible due to too great a loss of both the coalition parties and the left-wing parties in the Senate. “Are we going to the left or to the right? It will be exciting,” predicts Eerdmans, who speaks of a tipping point. “We have to become so big that Rutte has to do business with us.” The party leader thinks that his party can win between 5 and 8 seats in the Senate.
JA21 presents itself as the reasonable right-wing alternative and targets right-wing voters who do not want to vote for the PVV or the Forum for Democracy. “We are a party that you can also work with and that is not just shouting,” said Eerdmans, who emphasizes that his party is growing.
Nuclear power plant
Each election program per province has its own accents: for example, Brabant must get its own nuclear power station at the Amer power station in Geertruidenberg, in Gelderland the construction of floating solar parks on the Lingemeer must be stopped immediately and in the provinces of North Holland and Overijssel, among others, many new houses are coming up.
But the right-wing spearheads of JA21 are reflected in all provincial programs: no wind turbines, but nuclear energy, no compulsory law for asylum seekers, but an asylum freeze and no “nitrogen stranglehold”, but room for farmers and housing. Another theme is the improvement of purchasing power. According to party leader Eerdmans, the right-wing voter is “fed up” and “should change”.
JA21 now has seven seats in the Senate, but these are all politicians who left the Forum for Democracy at the end of 2020. It will therefore be exciting whether the party will succeed this time in winning provincial seats it has won, Eerdmans acknowledges.
