Dutch general election, 1998

Dutch general election, 1998

6 May 1998

All 150 seats to the House of Representatives 76 seats were needed for a majority Turnout 73.4%   First party Second party Third party   Leader Wim Kok Frits Bolkestein Jaap de Hoop Scheffer Party PvdA VVD CDA Leader since 1986 1990 1997 Last election 37 seats, 23.9% 31 seats, 19.9% 34 seats, 22.2% Seats won 45 38 29 Seat change 8 7 5 Popular vote 2,494,555 2,124,971 1,581,053 Percentage 29.0% 24.7% 18.3%   Fourth party Fifth party Sixth party   Leader Els Borst Paul Rosenmöller Jan Marijnissen Party D66 GL SP Leader since 1998 1994 1988 Last election 24 seats, 15.4% 5 seats, 3.4% 2 seats, 1.3% Seats won 14 11 5 Seat change 10 6 3 Popular vote 773,497 625,968 303,703 Percentage 9.0% 7.3% 3.5%   Seventh party Eighth party Ninth party   Leader Leen van Dijke Bas van der Vlies Gert Schutte Party RPF SGP GPV Leader since 1994 1986 1981 Last election 3 seats, 1.7% 2 seats, 1.7% 2 seats, 1.3% Seats won 3 3 2 Seat change 0 1 0 Popular vote 174,593 153,583 108,724 Percentage 2.0% 1.7% 1.2%

Prime Minister before election Wim Kok PvdA Prime Minister Wim Kok PvdA

General elections were held in the Netherlands on 6 May 1998.^[1]

Result

During the 1998 election the purple coalition of social-democrats and left and right liberals fortified its majority. Both the social-democratic PvdA and the conservative liberal VVD won considerably, much at the cost of their junior partner in cabinet, the progressive liberal D66.

Political observers attributed the win to the economic performance of the coalition, including reduction of unemployment and the budget deficit, steady growth and job creation combined with wage freezes and trimming of the welfare state, together with a policy of fiscal restraint.^[2]

The two small left opposition parties, the green GroenLinks, and the socialist SP, were rewarded for their 'quality opposition'. The major opposition party, CDA, uncomfortable in its opposition role, also lost seats. The two parties for the elderly AOV and Unie 55+ and the rightwing populist CD did not return to parliament.

The formation resulted in the continuation of the Kok cabinet, with the second Kok cabinet.

Results

Party	Votes	%	Seats	+/–
Labour Party	2,494,555	29.0	45	+8
People's Party for Freedom and Democracy	2,124,971	24.7	38	+7
Christian Democratic Appeal	1,581,053	18.4	29	–5
Democrats 66	773,497	9.0	14	–10
GreenLeft	625,968	7.3	11	+6
Socialist Party	303,703	3.5	5	+3
Reformatory Political Federation	174,593	2.0	3	0
Reformed Political Party	153,583	1.8	3	+1
Reformed Political League	108,724	1.3	2	0
Centre Democrats	52,226	0.6	0	–3
General Elderly Alliance/Union 55+	45,994	0.5	0	–7
Mobile Netherlands	45,219	0.5	0	New
Seniors 2000	36,157	0.4	0	New
New Middle Party	23,512	0.3	0	New
The Greens	16,585	0.2	0	0
Natural Law Party	15,746	0.2	0	0
Catholic Political Party	8,233	0.1	0	New
Progressive Integration Party	7,225	0.1	0	0
New Solidarity Elderly Union	6,455	0.1	0	New
New Communist Party of the Netherlands	5,620	0.1	0	0
Idealists/Jij	2,500	0.0	0	New
The Voters Collective	1,668	0.0	0	New
Invalid/blank votes	14,435	–	–	–
Total	8,622,222	100	150	0
Registered voters/turnout	11,755,132	73.3	–	–
Source: Nohlen & Stöver, European Elections Database

Popular Vote
PvdA			28.98%
VVD			24.69%
CDA			18.37%
D66			8.99%
GL			7.27%
SP			3.53%
RPF			2.03%
SGP			1.78%
GPV			1.26%
CD			0.61%
AOV/Unie 55+			0.53%
Other			1.96%

References

1. Nohlen, D & Stöver, P (2010) Elections in Europe: A data handbook, p1396 ISBN 978-3-8329-5609-7
2. Netherlands: Elections held in 1998 Inter-Parliamentary Union

Further reading

• Aarts, Kees; Semetko, Holli A. (1999). "Representation and responsibility: the 1998 Dutch election in perspective". Acta Politica (Palgrave Macmillan) 34 (2): 111–129.
• Irwin, Galen A. (1999). "The Dutch parliamentary election of 1998". Electoral Studies (Elsevier) 18 (2): 271–276. doi:10.1016/S0261-3794(98)00048-1.
• Irwin, Galen A.; van Holsteyn, Joop J. M. (1999). "Parties and politicians in the parliamentary election of 1998". Acta Politica (Palgrave Macmillan) 34 (2): 130–157.