D66 Secures Largest โVoteโ Share in Dutch Election, Despite Countingโ Irregularities
Teh Hague, โNetherlands – preliminary results confirm D66 as theโ largest party in the recent Dutch election, surpassing the Party for Freedom (PVV) by 29,668 votes. While the overall count is deemed reliable, election โขobserver โJan Kuijken highlighted ongoing issues with speed and transparency in reporting results, as well as isolated โincidents of incorrect โballot papers.
Kuijken affirmed the counting โprocess itself is generally โreliable, noting a meaningfulโฃ reduction in errors from over 14,000 in โ2021 to 7,766 this year. However, he stressed โthat human errorโค remains a factor.
Concerns โคwere raised regarding the municipalities of Westerwolde (Groningen) and Stein (Limburg), where a total of 261 invalid ballots were used dueโข to a supplier error – incorrect ballot papers from a different constituency were distributed.”Very sadโ forโ the voters concerned, who sincerely believed that they had cast a valid vote,” Kuijken stated. The Electoral Act mandates โvotingโ for candidates within โone’s own district, โฃrendering theseโข votes invalid.
Kuijken also criticized the delayed publication of polling station reports, specifically citing Amsterdam’s late release. “The law says: without delay,” he emphasized,meaningโ results shoudl be โpublishedโ immediately. He further cautioned municipalities against releasing partial results to the ANP news agency, wich led to multiple adjustments and “unrest.” Kuijken โคurged municipalities and mediaโ to establish clear agreements regarding the presentation of provisional counts, stating, “Extremely careful handlingโฆis really critically important. Or else, a misunderstanding or a wrong impression can easily arise.”
