Five days to go to March 15 Dutch national parliamentary elections. A chorus of 28 parties, listing 1114 MP candidates for a 150-seat Dutch Parliament leaves many voters and foreign observers equally baffled.

International journalists wonder why ‘there is not more panic’ in the Netherlands where the PVV party of Geert Wilders competes for the lead with the Dutch Conservative VVD of current Prime Minister Rutte, and the topics of economics, migration and identity are high on the agenda. Some predict Trumpite scenes in the Dutch political arena in the aftermath of next Wednesday’s vote.

For Europe, this first election this year involving one of the founding member states of the EU could have strong implications. The interest in other EU countries for next week’s votes in the Low Countries is therefore unusually high. Reason why we are uploading English-language summaries of the Europe paragraphs of the main parties political manifestos.

The EBN will follow election night, report on the aftermath and will participate in a number of international debates. Follow us on #EBNtweets and on #EuropeElects

For: Brief Introduction Europe in Dutch Political Party Manifestos 2017, see Pdf 1

For: Europe Paragraphs in Top-7 Manifestos, see Pdf 2

For: Summary of some key positions in top-11 Manifestos, see Pdf 3