ANP / Hollandse HoogteGroenLinks leader Klaver (l) and PvdA leader Kuiken (r) upon hearing the results
NOS News•today, 16:58•Edited today, 17:22
PvdA and GroenLinks will participate in the elections on 22 November with a joint list and one election programme. Last week, the members of the two parties were allowed to give their opinion in a referendum about joining forces: 91.8 percent of the participating GroenLinks members voted in favor and 87.9 percent of the PvdA’s. The result was announced in Utrecht.
It was widely expected that members would agree to the joint list. Earlier consultations already showed that most members, and also many party celebrities, are in favor of further left-wing cooperation. For example, GroenLinks leader Jesse Klaver has also become a member of the PvdA, he said on Friday.
After the results were announced, PvdA leader Attje Kuiken said she had not expected such massive support. “That is hopeful. People have a great need for change, for air. In the middle of a politics of distrust, of being against each other, we say: no, we do it together.”
No golden mountains
GroenLinks leader Klaver was emotional. “We have heard very often: that will never work. But this shows that change is possible if you just keep believing.”
According to Klaver, ‘United Left’ will not promise any golden mountains to the voters in the coming months. “Maybe it won’t get any better for you individually. But it will benefit us as a society.”
This is how the result was announced:
PvdA and GroenLinks jointly enter the elections
PvdA and GroenLinks are currently the sixth and seventh parties in the House of Representatives with nine and eight seats respectively. In recent years, both parties have seen their support dwindle in elections. By working together, they hope to turn that tide.
Fighting with VVD and BBB
In the last Bearing pointerof June 27, both parties are on a modest gain compared to the 2021 elections. Together they could count on 20 to 26 seats, and can therefore compete with the VVD and BBB for first place.
It is not yet known who will be the leader of the combination. The intention is to announce later this week how it will be chosen. There are names going around: from the current party leaders Klaver and Kuiken, but also from European Commissioner Frans Timmermans (PvdA) and Amsterdam alderman Marjolein Moorman (PvdA).
Fusion?
The joint list and joint election manifesto appear to be a stepping stone towards a full merger of the two left-wing parties. This will be discussed further in the near future.
Mergers are quite common in parliamentary history. GroenLinks itself is the result of a merger between PPR, PSP, CPN and EVP in 1990. The PvdA also emerged after the Second World War from a collaboration of three parties.
Other well-known merger parties are the CDA (created in 1980 from KVP, ARP and CHU) and the ChristenUnie (after the merger of GPV and RPF in 2000).
2023-07-17 14:58:14
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