An employee of a polling station in Rotterdam has been removed from her position after a post on social media. In a photo of herself on Instagram, she announced that she would tear up all votes for Geert Wilders and Thierry Baudet. According to the woman, it was intended as a joke. “I did not see the seriousness of the situation.”
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The municipality did so and immediately gave the employee, who was also scheduled for Tuesday afternoon, on duty. “It is bad what she has done. This is not what you want to radiate as a municipality. Polling station employees must be neutral, ” says Paul Tissingh of the municipality of Rotterdam.
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According to him, it is impossible that votes could actually be torn apart. “There are many polling station members who check. There is no tampering. Neutrality is guaranteed. ”
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The municipality itself keeps a close eye on social media and found out, according to Tissingh. A voter who saw the photo posted yesterday has filed a complaint with the polling station itself. “It is going like wildfire,” said the chairman of the polling station. The complaint has been recorded by him in a so-called ‘official report’.
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Forum for Democracy further distributed the employee’s photo on social media. ‘Such a person should therefore not count votes, Municipality of Rotterdam’, it says. It unleashed a stream of reactions. “We think it is right that the municipality immediately put the polling station member in question inactive,” said a spokesman for Forum for Democracy. “It is important that municipalities guarantee the fair conduct of the elections. That is the foundation of our democratic constitutional state. ”
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Despite the many reactions on social media, no extra security measures have been taken at the polling station. This afternoon two policemen came to take a look. “As a precaution,” said Tissingh.
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The woman who caused the uproar is terribly sorry. “It was meant as a joke to my friends. Very stupid of myself. I think it’s all very much. ”
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PVV leader Geert Wilders calls the post of the polling station member ‘incredible’ on Twitter. Party member and Rotterdam councilor Maurice Meeuwissen plans to ask questions to the Rotterdam council. He thinks that more action should be taken against the employee of the polling station. “If you board the plane at Schiphol and say that you have a bomb with you, you go to jail. I find that comparable to what is happening here. ”
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He also wonders whether the elections are fair. “This woman could say it’s a joke, but how many more people are there who really want this?”
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The municipality does not intend to take any further steps against the polling station employee, even though in Tissingh’s eyes she should have known that this was not possible. “All polling station employees receive thorough online training, which also includes this issue,” says Tissingh. “Being neutral is a basic rule. She’s done something really stupid. But the measures we take must be proportional. ”
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