PM Rutte’s party wins Dutch election, first exit polls say

The Hague, March 16 (IANS) Prime Minister Mark Rutte's liberal rightist party led in the Dutch parliamentary elections, according to the final exit poll with the right wing populist party PVV staying far behind, media reports said.

The definite exit poll released on Wednesday forecasted the VVD won 31 seats in the 150 seats in the House of Representatives, Xinhua news agency reported.

The PVV, the centre-right Christian Democrats CDA, and the leftist liberals D66 were expected to garner 19 seats each. The green leftist GroenLinks got 16 seats, followed by the leftist Socialist Party SP with 14 seats and the PvdA with nine seats.

The amount of 31 seats means a loss of 10 seats for the VVD compared to the previous elections in 2012. The PVV gained four seats compared to the previous elections, but the result was thought to be a disappointment for its leader Geert Wilders, because his party had long led pre-election polls.

The PvdA, or the Labor, which formed the outgoing coalition government with the VVD, is the biggest loser in the elections, according to the final exit poll.

Compared to 2012, CDA gained six seats, D66 won seven more seats, and SP lost one seat while GroenLinks became the biggest winner with a gain of 12 seats.