(The Hague) The anti-EU and xenophobic message of Geert Wilders, sometimes compared to former US President Donald Trump for his populist rhetoric and peroxided hair, despite having been in politics much longer, ended up propel him to first place, according to exit polls after the Dutch legislative elections on Wednesday.
Not hesitating to call Moroccans “scum” or to propose caricature contests of the Prophet Mohammed, Mr. Wilders, 60, has built his career on his crusade against what he calls an “Islamic invasion” of the ‘West.
Neither the troubles with the Dutch justice system – which found him guilty of insulting Moroccans – nor the death threats against him – which have placed him under police protection since 2004 – have discouraged him.
“I don’t regret fighting for freedom,” Mr. Wilders said in an interview on the eve of the 2021 election.
“Of course, I’m taking a stand, I’m being attacked, my country is being attacked.”
Mr. Wilders was participating in his sixth election, after having failed to cause an upset on several occasions.
But after trying to smooth over some of his populist rhetoric by focusing on other voter concerns, he ended up exceeding expectations.
There are “more important problems than fighting the flood of asylum seekers and immigrants”, he said during one of the last election debates, adding that he was ready to put side his opinions on Islam to govern.
If immigration remained a key issue in the campaign, the Dutch are even more worried about “whether they have even more money left in their wallets”, he said.
He promised to focus more on “security and health care” than his opposition to Islam.
“Free buffets”
However, the manifesto of his PVV (Freedom Party) retained the xenophobic tone, which has become its trademark.
“Asylum seekers feast on delicious free buffets on cruise ships while Dutch families have to cut back on shopping,” the manifesto reads.
Proposed anti-immigration measures include the restoration of Dutch border control, the detention and expulsion of illegal immigrants, the return of Syrian asylum seekers and the reintroduction of work permits for intra-EU workers.
As for Islam, the PVV manifesto says: “The Netherlands is not an Islamic country. No schools, Korans and Islamic mosques.”
He proposes banning the wearing of headscarves in government buildings. In terms of foreign policy, and a “Netherlands first” approach which includes the closure of its representation in Ramallah and the strengthening of ties with Israel, in particular the moving of its embassy to Jerusalem.
A “binding referendum” on a “Nexit” – the Netherlands’ exit from the EU – is also in the programme, as well as an “immediate end” to development aid.
“Anger, not fear”
Born in 1963 in Venlo, near the German border, Mr. Wilders grew up in a Catholic family with his brother and two sisters.
His mother was half-Indonesian, a fact he rarely mentions.
He developed an interest in politics in the 1980s, his older brother told German magazine Der Spiegel.
“He was neither clearly left nor right at the time, nor xenophobic. But he was fascinated by the political game, the struggle for power and influence,” said Paul Wilders.
His hatred of Islam seems to have developed slowly. He spent time in Israel on a kibbutz, witnessing tensions with the Palestinians firsthand. He was also shocked by the assassinations of far-right leader Pim Fortuyn in 2002 and radical anti-Islam filmmaker Theo van Gogh in 2004.
Isolated character
He vowed not to allow himself to be silenced, despite being found guilty of insulting Moroccan-Dutch citizens, a high-profile trial that raised his profile just months after Brexit.
Mr. Wilders entered politics in 1998 within the liberal VVD party, which he left in 2006 to found his PVV.
His biggest electoral victory until today was in 2010, when he won 24 seats. In 2017, it became the second party in Parliament, then the third in 2021.
A master in the art of using the media by accusing them of bias, loved or hated, he divides a country which prides itself on a long tradition of multicultural tolerance.
Some see Geert Wilders as an isolated figure. He is married to a Hungarian woman, but they have no children, and his security limits his contact with the outside world.
But, riding on the Dutch’s disavowal of their political leaders, Mr. Wilders succeeded in pushing political discourse in the Netherlands even further to the right.