The Pim Fortuyn List (, LPF) was a
political party in the Netherlands that existed from 2002 to 2008 at a national level and was named after its
eponym
An eponym is a noun after which or for which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. Adjectives derived from the word ''eponym'' include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''.
Eponyms are commonly used for time periods, places, innovati ...
ous founder
Pim Fortuyn
Wilhelmus Simon Petrus Fortuijn, known as Pim Fortuyn (; 19 February 1948 – 6 May 2002), was a Dutch politician, author, civil servant, businessman, sociologist and academic who founded the party Pim Fortuyn List (Lijst Pim Fortuyn or LPF) in ...
, a former university professor and political columnist. The party was often considered
right-wing populist
Right-wing populism, also called national populism and right populism, is a political ideology that combines right-wing politics with populist rhetoric and themes. Its rhetoric employs anti- elitist sentiments, opposition to the Establishm ...
nationalist
Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation,Anthony D. Smith, Smith, A ...
by media and political observers due to its policies
as well as adhering to its own distinct ideology of ''
Fortuynism'' according to some commentators which reflected the political ideas of Fortuyn.
[ Andeweg, R. and G. Irwin ''Politics and Governance in the Netherlands'', Basingstoke (Palgrave) p.49]
The LPF supported tougher measures against immigration and crime, opposition to
multiculturalism
Multiculturalism is the coexistence of multiple cultures. The word is used in sociology, in political philosophy, and colloquially. In sociology and everyday usage, it is usually a synonym for ''Pluralism (political theory), ethnic'' or cultura ...
, greater political reform, a reduction in state bureaucracy and was
eurosceptic
Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies and seek refor ...
but differed somewhat from other European right-wing or nationalist parties by taking a liberal stance on certain social issues and sought to describe its ideology as
pragmatic and not
populistic. It also aimed to present itself as an alternative to the
Polder model
The polder model () is a method of consensus decision-making, based on the Dutch version of consensus-based economic and social policymaking in the 1980s and 1990s.Ewoud Sanders, ''Woorden met een verhaal'' (Amsterdam / Rotterdam, 2004), 104–06 ...
of Dutch politics and the governing style of the existing mainstream parties.
Pim Fortuyn had initially had planned to contest the
2002 general election as leader of the
Livable Netherlands (LN) party. He was however dismissed as leader of LN in February 2002 due to controversial remarks he made in a newspaper interview on
immigration
Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as Permanent residency, permanent residents. Commuting, Commuter ...
-related issues, and instead founded LPF a few days later, taking many former LN candidates with him. After gaining support in opinion polls, Fortuyn was
assassinated on 6 May 2002, nine days before the election. The party held onto its support, and went on to become the second-largest party in the election.
The LPF formed part of a
coalition government
A coalition government, or coalition cabinet, is a government by political parties that enter into a power-sharing arrangement of the executive. Coalition governments usually occur when no single party has achieved an absolute majority after an ...
with the
Christian Democratic Appeal
The Christian Democratic Appeal ( , CDA) is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in the Netherlands.
Formed as a federation in 1975 by the Catholic People's Party, the Anti-Revolutionary Party, and the Christian Historical ...
(CDA) and the
People's Party for Freedom and Democracy
The People's Party for Freedom and Democracy ( , VVD) is a Conservative liberalism, conservative-liberal List of political parties in the Netherlands, political party in the Netherlands. The VVD, whose forerunner was the Freedom Party (Netherl ...
(VVD) as part of the
first Balkenende cabinet
The first Balkenende cabinet was the executive branch of the Netherlands government from 22 July 2002 until 27 May 2003. The cabinet was formed by the Christian-democratic Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), the nationalistic Pim Fortuyn L ...
and was granted ministerial posts. However, internal conflicts in the LPF led to the coalition's break-up and fresh elections after a few months. Following the
2003 election, the party was left in opposition. It became clear that the party was not viable without its original leader, and it went into decline until it was finally dissolved in 2008. Despite this, Fortuyn and the LPF have had a significant influence on changing public discourse on immigration, multiculturalism, and political reform, and went on to influence politicians in both older and newer political parties in the Netherlands.
History
Background
The LPF was founded by its namesake, Pim Fortuyn, a former sociology professor who had become known in the Netherlands as an author, press columnist and a media commentator. Fortuyn had announced his intention to run for parliament in a television interview on 20 August 2001. An unusual aspect of this was that it was not yet clear which political party he would be a candidate for. Although he was already in contact with the
Livable Netherlands (LN) party, he initially also considered running for the
Christian Democratic Appeal
The Christian Democratic Appeal ( , CDA) is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in the Netherlands.
Formed as a federation in 1975 by the Catholic People's Party, the Anti-Revolutionary Party, and the Christian Historical ...
(for whom he had briefly worked as an advisor) or creating his own
list
A list is a Set (mathematics), set of discrete items of information collected and set forth in some format for utility, entertainment, or other purposes. A list may be memorialized in any number of ways, including existing only in the mind of t ...
. He subsequently became a member of the LN in 2001 at the encouragement of its chairman
Jan Nagel. On 25 November he was chosen as party leader for the LN. The LN functioned as the combined national extension of various movements that existed as localist alternatives to the main parties and had contested
municipal
A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate.
The term ''municipality'' may also mean the gov ...
elections but had never contested in national elections before.
Fortuyn concluded his acceptance speech by saying the words that would become his slogan; "At your service!"
[ Almost immediately after Fortuyn became leader, LN went from 2% in opinion polls to about 17%.]
In January 2002, it was announced that Fortuyn also would head the Livable Rotterdam
Livable Rotterdam () is a conservative liberal and localist political party in the municipality of Rotterdam in the Netherlands, which was founded by Ronald Sørensen in 2001. The party was founded at the same time as a number of other ''Leefbaar ...
(LR) list for the March 2002 local elections. The official 2002 election study found that immigration and integration problems were the second most important issue for voters after issues concerning the health care system. Helped by the many speeches and interviews given by Fortuyn, immigration issues became the major topic of the national political agenda, thereby forcing other parties to react.
Until February, Liveable Netherlands had received disproportionate and generally sympathetic coverage in the media. The situation took a dramatic turn on 9 February, when Fortuyn was interviewed in ''de Volkskrant
''De Volkskrant'' (; ), stylized as de Volkskrant, is a Dutch daily morning newspaper. Founded in 1919, it has a nationwide circulation of about 250,000.
Formerly a leading centre-left Catholic broadsheet, ''de Volkskrant'' today is a medium- ...
'', one of the leading national newspapers. Against the strong advice of his campaign team, he made several controversial statements; including one that said Islam
Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...
was "a backward culture", that no more asylum seekers would be allowed into the country, and, if necessary, the possible repeal of anti-racism clauses in the Dutch Constitution
The Constitution of the Kingdom of the Netherlands of 24 August 1815 () is one of two fundamental documents governing the Kingdom of the Netherlands as well as the Constitution, fundamental law of the Netherlands, Netherlands proper (the territo ...
to protect freedom of speech
Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The rights, right to freedom of expression has been r ...
. Fortuyn maintained that if he came to power, he would pardon asylum seekers and illegal immigrants who had been in the Netherlands for a certain period but if legally possible he would close the borders to Muslim immigrants. Fortuyn was summoned to an emergency meeting by the LN party board and asked to retract his statements, but after refusing he was dismissed as party leader the next day. In a television interview, Fortuyn said that the split was irreparable, although he would have preferred to remain in the party.[
]
Establishment
Fortuyn founded Pim Fortuyn List (LPF) on 14 February[Hippe, J., Voerman, G., & Lucardie, A. (2004). Kroniek 2002: overzicht van partijpolitieke gebeurtenissen van het jaar 2002. In G. Voerman (editor), Jaarboek Documentatiecentrum Nederlandse Politieke Partijen 2002 (blz. 104). (Jaarboek Documentatiecentrum Nederlandse Politieke Partijen). Documentatiecentrum Nederlandse Politieke Partijen "Op 14 februari richtten zij de Politieke Vereniging ‘Lijst Pim Fortuyn’ (LPF) op."] taking several former LN members and candidates with him. He began assembling candidates to stand in the upcoming general election.[ Fortuyn secured financial backing from several individuals involved in the ]property development
Real estate development, or property development, is a business process, encompassing activities that range from the renovation and re- lease of existing buildings to the purchase of raw land and the sale of developed land or parcels to oth ...
sector and was allocated an office and campaign headquarters in downtown Rotterdam. Within a short time, Fortuyn was able to secure thirty candidates for the election. Mat Herben was appointed as LPF group leader. Second on the party's list was João Varela, originally from Cape Verde whom Fortuyn proposed as immigration minister should he become prime minister. Fortuyn also recruited Jim Janssen van Raaij a former member of the European Parliament for the CDA and one of few on the list with professional political experience. Others included former editor of ''Elsevier
Elsevier ( ) is a Dutch academic publishing company specializing in scientific, technical, and medical content. Its products include journals such as ''The Lancet'', ''Cell (journal), Cell'', the ScienceDirect collection of electronic journals, ...
'' Ferry Hoogendijk
Ferdinand Alexander "Ferry" Hoogendijk (23 November 1933 – 14 February 2014) was a Dutch journalist, political scientist and politician. He served as the editor-in-chief of ''Elsevier Weekblad'' and was elected as a member of the Dutch House of ...
, ex-drafts champion Harm Wiersma, civil servant Joost Eerdmans
Bernard Johannes "Joost" Eerdmans (born 9 January 1971) is a Dutch politician, broadcaster, journalist and former civil servant who has served as Leader of JA21 since 18 December 2020, a party he co-founded with Annabel Nanninga. Elected to th ...
, Surinamese broadcaster Philomena Bijlhout, counter-terrorism officer André Peperkoorn
André Peperkoorn is a Dutch military general, counter-terrorism official and former politician.
Peperkoorn served as a lieutenant colonel in the Dutch military police and later a counter-terrorism officer with the Royal Marechaussee and Dutch min ...
, spokesman for farmers Wien van den Brink and spokeswoman for the Central Bureau of Food Trade Winny de Jong. The party's candidates were unveiled by Fortuyn at a press conference in March 2002.
Opinion polls soon showed that he took most of LN's supporters with him, leaving LN with its original 2%, while Fortuyn soared to 17%.[ The local LR—which held on to Fortuyn as its leader—was hugely successful in the March 2002 local elections, as it won more than one third of the vote and became ]Rotterdam
Rotterdam ( , ; ; ) is the second-largest List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city in the Netherlands after the national capital of Amsterdam. It is in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, part of the North S ...
's strongest party, displacing the Labour Party who had governed Rotterdam since World War Two. Fortuyn was subsequently elected to Rotterdam's municipal council.
In the run-up to the 2002 general election, Fortuyn appeared in numerous television and radio interviews to generate publicity, and was featured in the televised leadership debates representing his new party. He was often attacked or derided as an extremist figure by other party leaders (in particular Labour leader Ad Melkert, former prime minister Wim Kok
Willem Kok (; 29 September 1938 – 20 October 2018) was a Dutch politician and trade union leader who served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 22 August 1994 until 22 July 2002.[GroenLinks
(, ; GL) is a Green politics, green List of political parties in the Netherlands, political party in the Netherlands.
It was formed on 1 March 1989 from the merger of four Left-wing politics, left-wing parties: the Communist Party of the Neth ...]
's Paul Rosenmöller
Paul Rosenmöller (born 11 May 1956) is a Dutch politician and former trade unionist and television presenter. Between 1989 and 2003, he was member of the Dutch House of Representatives for GroenLinks and was party leader from 1994. Rosenmöller ...
), and both Dutch and foreign media outlets compared Fortuyn to other European far-right party leaders. Fortuyn disputed the comparisons and stated that the press and other party leaders were distorting or mislabeling him and his ideas. However, polling showed rapid and growing support for the LPF, with some polls indicating that the LPF would emerge as the largest party and make Fortuyn a candidate for prime minister. Fortuyn himself maintained that he would not accept a cabinet position headed by another party leader and aimed to take the role of prime minister himself.
Fortuyn assassination
It was reported in February 2002 that Fortuyn did not dare to appear in public owing to death threat
A death threat is a threat, often made anonymously, by one person or a group of people to kill another person or group of people. These threats are often designed to intimidate victims in order to manipulate their behaviour, in which case a d ...
s. In March, he was attacked by pie-throwing activists at the presentation of his new book '' De puinhopen van acht jaar Paars'' (which became the bestselling book by a Dutch author in the Netherlands in 2002). Despite this, the authorities did not provide protection for Fortuyn, nor did he request protection. In various interviews, including with the BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
and ''Jensen!
''Jensen!'' is a Dutch late-night talk show on the television station RTL 5. It airs on weekdays from 22:30 to 23:30 CET during winter, 20:30 to 21:30 UTC during summer.
The show's creator, anchorman Robert Jensen, also acted as its produc ...
,'' Fortuyn expressed a concern that he would be killed or injured during the election campaign, and argued that if such an event were to happen, the media and Dutch political establishment would be to blame through creating a hostile atmosphere against him.
On 6 May, Fortuyn was assassinated outside a radio studio in Hilversum
Hilversum () is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Holland, Netherlands. Located in the heart of the Gooi, it is ...
.[ This was the first political murder in the Netherlands for centuries (excluding the ]Second World War
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
). Some claimed that by demonising Fortuyn, the political left
Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy either as a whole or of certain social hierarchies. Left-wing politi ...
and the media
Media may refer to:
Communication
* Means of communication, tools and channels used to deliver information or data
** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising
** Interactive media, media that is inter ...
had created a climate of opinion that had made the assassination possible. Campaigning immediately stopped, and although some suggested postponing the elections, the campaign resumed (half-heartedly) after his funeral four days later. His funeral was broadcast live on television and, according to Cas Mudde
Cas Mudde (born 3 June 1967) is a Dutch political science, political scientist who focuses on Extremism, political extremism and populism in Europe and the United States. His research includes the areas of political parties, extremism, democracy, ...
, lead "to scenes of mass hysteria not seen since the Netherlands national football team
The Netherlands national football team ( or simply ''Het Nederlands elftal'') has represented the Netherlands in international men's football matches since 1905. The men's national team is controlled by the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNV ...
won the European Championship in 1988."[ The murder of Fortuyn, together with that of Theo van Gogh two years later, would result in a polarisation in the political debate in the Netherlands, and subsequently changes in immigration-related policies and public discourse.
]
First Balkenende cabinet (2002–2003)
The LPF decided to maintain Fortuyn's posthumous candidacy, and delayed naming a new leader until after the election. The 2002 general election proved a great success for the LPF, yielding 17% of the votes and 26 seats in the House of Representatives
House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...
—by far a record number of seats in the Netherlands for a new party—to become the second largest party. LN also made it into Parliament, with two seats. The Labour Party (PvdA) and People's Party for Freedom and Democracy
The People's Party for Freedom and Democracy ( , VVD) is a Conservative liberalism, conservative-liberal List of political parties in the Netherlands, political party in the Netherlands. The VVD, whose forerunner was the Freedom Party (Netherl ...
(VVD) saw their largest-ever losses, while the Christian Democratic Appeal
The Christian Democratic Appeal ( , CDA) is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in the Netherlands.
Formed as a federation in 1975 by the Catholic People's Party, the Anti-Revolutionary Party, and the Christian Historical ...
(CDA) won large gains – later attributed in part to the fact that CDA leader Jan Peter Balkenende
Jan Pieter Balkenende Jr. ( ; born 7 May 1956), commonly known as Jan Peter Balkenende, is a Dutch jurist and politician of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) who served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 22 July 2002 to 14 October 20 ...
had remained neutral and not joined in attacking Fortuyn with other party leaders during debates.[ Balkenende had earlier announced that his party would follow a tougher line towards asylum seekers and tighten some of the Netherlands's immigration policies, and he later agreed with much of Fortuyn's criticism of the purple coalition and Holland's multicultural society. Some commentators claimed that the CDA was able to draw in voters who otherwise would have supported the LPF (but felt it was no longer viable without Fortuyn in charge) or that the CDA was seen as a stabilizing force after a tense election.] As leader of the strongest party, Balkenende became the leading candidate for prime minister.[
Following the election, journalist and former civil servant Mat Herben was appointed Fortuyn's successor as LPF party leader in May 2002 while newly elected LPF representatives João Varela and ]Ferry Hoogendijk
Ferdinand Alexander "Ferry" Hoogendijk (23 November 1933 – 14 February 2014) was a Dutch journalist, political scientist and politician. He served as the editor-in-chief of ''Elsevier Weekblad'' and was elected as a member of the Dutch House of ...
became the party's vice-chairmen. Businessman and personal friend of Fortuyn was appointed chairman by the LPF parliamentary faction and faced the difficult task of shaping the party organization without Fortuyn.
Together with the CDA and the VVD, the LPF formed part of the governing coalition, and supplied several members for the Balkenende cabinet. The party was granted four of fourteen cabinet seats, for immigration, economics, environment, health and sports, and five state secretaries. LPF member Eduard Bomhoff was appointed deputy prime minister. The following day after the cabinet's formation, LPF State Secretary for Social Affairs and Work Opportunity Philomena Bijlhout resigned after it was reported that she had been a member of a Suriname
Suriname, officially the Republic of Suriname, is a country in northern South America, also considered as part of the Caribbean and the West Indies. It is a developing country with a Human Development Index, high level of human development; i ...
se militia group. She was replaced by fellow LPF MP Khee Liang Phoa.
Without its original leader and lack of a clearly defined organisational structure and political experience among its members, the LPF also succumbed to highly public internal squabbles. MPs within the LPF resigned to sit as independents due to the infighting and the intense media storm following Fortuyn's death or unsuccessfully tried founding splinter parties of their own to contest in the next election. In August 2002, Herben resigned as leader due to the unrest and was briefly replaced by Harry Wijnschenk
Hartog Hank Richard "Harry" Wijnschenk (born 24 January 1964 in Amsterdam) is a former Netherlands, Dutch politician. From 2002 to 2003 he was an MP (NL), MP for the Pim Fortuyn List (LPF), and later for the Wijnschenk Group. He briefly served a ...
. However, arguments within the party continued after Wijnschenk was accused of dictatorial behaviour by other faction members which eventually led to the departure of LPF MPs Winny de Jong and Cor Eberhard. Wijnschenk was subsequently ousted from his position and replaced by Herben again, but by October 2002, the break-up of the government coalition was ultimately triggered by the bickering of LPF Ministers Eduard Bomhoff and Herman Heinsbroek who did not get along on a personal level. Although the VVD had suggested that the LPF could replace Bomhoff and Heinsbroek in the cabinet, Bomhoff warned that the other parties would use the opportunity to call a new election. Ultimately, the cabinet fell and a fresh election was called.
Opposition and disintegration (2003–2006)
In the January 2003 general election, the LPF shrank to 5.7% support and gained eight seats while Balkenende and the CDA retained a majority.[ Following the election the LPF was exchanged for the ]Democrats 66
Democrats 66 (; D66) is a social liberal and progressive political party in the Netherlands, which is positioned on the centre to centre-left of the political spectrum. It is a member of the Liberal International (LI) and the Alliance of Li ...
in the government coalition and never returned to government. The LPF found it hard to maintain support in parliamentary opposition as besides Joost Eerdmans
Bernard Johannes "Joost" Eerdmans (born 9 January 1971) is a Dutch politician, broadcaster, journalist and former civil servant who has served as Leader of JA21 since 18 December 2020, a party he co-founded with Annabel Nanninga. Elected to th ...
, most of its Members of Parliament were not very visible or considered as charismatic as Fortuyn, while party leader Herben had enough work keeping the party from further infighting. The LPF also went into financial straits as many of its former financial backers left. Other commentators later claimed that the relative inexperience of some of the LPF's members and lack of internal structure hampered its ability to function as a coherent movement. As the new coalition continued most of the former coalition's policies and Balkenende stated that he agreed with some of Fortuyn's views on multiculturalism and implemented some of his policy ideas, it became increasingly difficult for the LPF to present the anti-establishment or alternative image to the government which had galvanized support for the party in the first place.
The LPF did see some success in the 2003 Dutch provincial elections in which it won 17 seats in eleven provinces, enabling it to qualify for a seat in the Senate during the 2003 Dutch Senate election
Elections of the Dutch Senate were held on 26 May 2003, following the provincial elections on 11 March 2003. The 564 members of the twelve States-Provincial elected the 75 Senate members. The new Senate was installed on 10 June 2003. The term o ...
which was taken by Rob Hessing. However, the party was beset by further internal problems and won just 2.6% of the vote in the 2004 European Parliament election
The 2004 European Parliament election was held between 10 and 13 June 2004 in the 25 member states of the European Union, using varying election days according to local custom. The European Parliamental parties could not be voted for, but elect ...
, and did not win a seat. In this election, Paul van Buitenen
Paul van Buitenen (; born 28 May 1957) is a retired Dutch politician of the Europe Transparent Party who served as a Member of the European Parliament from 2004 to 2009.
He was an assistant-auditor in the European Commission's Financial Control ...
surprisingly won two seats with his anti-corruption Europe Transparent
Europe Transparent () was a political party in the Netherlands. The party's founder, Paul van Buitenen, announced its establishment on 8 April 2004. In the 2004 European Parliament election the party gained two seats, after a campaign that cost ...
(although it was not successful in the long term). By 2004, the LPF had fallen to a less than 1% support and disintegrated. The party had lost most of its members, and for a brief period the parliamentary faction (with exception of Wien van den Brink) had declared itself independent from the party while continuing to use the LPF name in the house. In 2005, a newly elected party board managed to put an end to many of the disputes within the LPF and got party organisation back in order. Herben also stepped back and handed over the faction chairmanship to Gerard van As. As a result, some LPF representatives rejoined the party. That same year, LPF minister and parliamentarian Hilbrand Nawijn held a meeting with Vlaams Belang
Vlaams Belang (; ; VB) is a Flemish nationalist, Eurosceptic and right-wing populist political party in the Flemish Region and Brussels Capital Region of Belgium. It is widely considered by the media and political analysts to be on the polit ...
politician Filip Dewinter in the former home of Fortuyn which caused uproar within the party since Fortuyn had stated he had wanted nothing to do with Dewinter's former Vlaams Blok party. Nawijn subsequently left the LPF and announced the formation of a new party with ideas closer to Vlaams Belang.[
In 2006, Van As announced his departure from the LPF to join Nawijn's Party for the Netherlands. A week after Van As' departure, ]Joost Eerdmans
Bernard Johannes "Joost" Eerdmans (born 9 January 1971) is a Dutch politician, broadcaster, journalist and former civil servant who has served as Leader of JA21 since 18 December 2020, a party he co-founded with Annabel Nanninga. Elected to th ...
was expelled from the parliamentary faction after signalling his intention to join the EénNL party founded by Marco Pastors and was subsequently joined by other former LPF parliamentarians. In March 2006, the LPF decided to go ahead with contesting the 2006 Dutch municipal elections and saw a relatively strong performance in the municipalities of Westland, Spijkenisse
Spijkenisse () is a large town in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of South Holland, Netherlands. Following an administrative reform in 2015, it is part of the List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of Nissewaard, and ha ...
and Eindhoven
Eindhoven ( ; ) is a city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, located in the southern Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Brabant, of which it is the largest municipality, and is also locat ...
with the LPF receiving its first alderman
An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law with similar officials existing in the Netherlands (wethouder) and Belgium (schepen). The term may be titular, denotin ...
in Westland.
List Five Fortuyn and dissolution (2006–2008)
The LPF attempted to start afresh and participated in the 2006 general election under its new name List Five Fortuyn (''Lijst Vijf Fortuyn''). On 25 September 2006, the party released a controversial campaign commercial which featured new leader Olaf Stuger coming down from "heaven" with a parachute and presenting himself as a "reincarnation" of Pim Fortuyn. Marten Fortuyn, brother of Pim Fortuyn, declared it "outrageous and tasteless." In the election, LVF did not receive enough votes to secure a seat with support of only 0.2%. It also lost all of its seats in the 2007 Provincial Council elections, meaning it was no longer eligible for representation in the Senate. By this stage, many former LPF supporters were switching to the new Party for Freedom
The Party for Freedom ( , PVV) is a right-wing populist, far-right political party in the Netherlands. Geert Wilders is the founder, party leader, and sole registered member of the party.
Founded in 2006 as the successor to Wilders' one-ma ...
led by Geert Wilders
Geert Wilders (born 6 September 1963) is a Dutch politician who has led the far-right Party for Freedom (PVV) since he founded it in 2006. He is also the party's leader in the House of Representatives. Wilders is best known for his right-wing p ...
which contained similar policies to the LPF and emerged as a successor.
In 2006, the party decided to close its office in the Hague
The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...
since it was no longer represented in national or provincial politics. In July 2007, the party held a meeting in which its delegates voted to dissolve itself by 1 January 2008. The decision was opposed by the party's youth-wing and LPF municipal branches in the Hague and Eindhoven who all declared they would continue under the LPF banner as independent organisations. As a result, the LPF name has only existed at a municipal level since 2008.
Ideology
The party was variously described as populist
Populism is a contested concept used to refer to a variety of political stances that emphasize the idea of the " common people" and often position this group in opposition to a perceived elite. It is frequently associated with anti-establis ...
, nationalist
Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation,Anthony D. Smith, Smith, A ...
, conservative-liberal, national-liberal, national-conservative
National conservatism is a nationalism, nationalist variant of conservatism that concentrates on upholding National identity, national and cultural identity, communitarianism and the public role of religion. It shares aspects of traditionalist c ...
, classical-liberal, eurosceptic
Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies and seek refor ...
and anti-Islam. Some scholars and political scientists observed that the LPF presented a distinct ideology that differed from other populist parties in Europe while Fortuyn himself maintained that both he and the party based their beliefs on pragmatic, not populistic ideas and wanted the LPF to represent an alternative set of policy solutions to what Fortuyn regarded as an identical consensus within the existing Dutch political establishment.
Fortuynism
The ideology
An ideology is a set of beliefs or values attributed to a person or group of persons, especially those held for reasons that are not purely about belief in certain knowledge, in which "practical elements are as prominent as theoretical ones". Form ...
or political style that is derived from Pim Fortuyn, and in turn the LPF, is often called '' Fortuynism''. Observers variously saw him as a political protest targeting the alleged elitism
Elitism is the notion that individuals who form an elite — a select group with desirable qualities such as intellect, wealth, power, physical attractiveness, notability, special skills, experience, lineage — are more likely to be construc ...
and bureaucratic style of the Dutch purple coalitions or as offering an appealing political style. The style was characterized variously as one "of openness, directness and clearness", populism
Populism is a essentially contested concept, contested concept used to refer to a variety of political stances that emphasize the idea of the "common people" and often position this group in opposition to a perceived elite. It is frequently a ...
or simply as charisma. Another school holds Fortuynism as a distinct ideology
An ideology is a set of beliefs or values attributed to a person or group of persons, especially those held for reasons that are not purely about belief in certain knowledge, in which "practical elements are as prominent as theoretical ones". Form ...
, with an alternative vision of society
A society () is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. ...
. Some argued that Fortuynism was not just ''one'' ideology, but contained liberalism
Liberalism is a Political philosophy, political and moral philosophy based on the Individual rights, rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality, the right to private property, and equality before the law. ...
, populism and nationalism
Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation, Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: Theory, I ...
.[ Gerrit Boerman, the head of the Document Center for Dutch Political Parties at the ]University of Groningen
The University of Groningen (abbreviated as UG; , abbreviated as RUG) is a Public university#Continental Europe, public research university of more than 30,000 students in the city of Groningen (city), Groningen, Netherlands. Founded in 1614, th ...
described Fortuyn's and by extension the LPF's ideology as not fitting into the traditional left-right pattern and described it as a "cocktail of elements stemming from different directions" which included strands of conservatism, communitarianism
Communitarianism is a philosophy that emphasizes the connection between the individual and the community. Its overriding philosophy is based on the belief that a person's social identity and personality are largely molded by community relation ...
, libertarianism
Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according t ...
, classical and social liberalism, and national-populism.
During the 2002 campaign, Fortuyn was accused of being on the "extreme right", although others saw only certain similarities. Comparisons were drawn between Fortuyn and the LPF with far-right populist leaders and parties in Europe such as Jean-Marie Le Pen
Jean Louis Marie Le Pen (20 June 1928 – 7 January 2025), commonly known as Jean-Marie Le Pen (), was a French politician, lawyer and activist. He founded the far-right National Front (now National Rally) party and served as the party's presi ...
and his French National Front by foreign journalists and these were often referred to by the Dutch media and rival politicians. However, this was strongly disputed by Fortuyn who stated he wanted nothing to do with such leaders while the LPF called the comparisons "over-simplified" and inaccurate, asserting that the party's immigration programme was not based on hatred of foreigners. While Fortuyn employed anti-immigration rhetoric, he was neither a radical nationalist
Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation,Anthony D. Smith, Smith, A ...
nor a defender of traditional authoritarian values. On the contrary, Fortuyn wanted to protect the socio-culturally liberal values of the Netherlands, women's rights and sexual minorities (he was openly homosexual
Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between people of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" exc ...
himself), from the "backward" Islamic culture.[Rydgren; van Holsteyn, 2005, p. 49.] Fortuyn often maintained that his opposition to immigration was not motivated by race or skin colour and that he was not opposed to a multi-racial society. The LPF also won support from some ethnic minorities and fielded candidates from immigrant backgrounds during the 2002 election; one of Fortuyn's closest associates was of Cape Verde
Cape Verde or Cabo Verde, officially the Republic of Cabo Verde, is an island country and archipelagic state of West Africa in the central Atlantic Ocean, consisting of ten volcanic islands with a combined land area of about . These islands ...
an origin while one of the party's MPs was a young woman of Turkish descent.
Domestic policy
Many of the LPF's policies for the 2002 general election were based on proposals put forward in Fortuyn's book '' De puinhopen van acht jaar Paars''. The LPF campaigned on a strong law and order message at both local and national levels. The party supported cutting state bureaucracy
Bureaucracy ( ) is a system of organization where laws or regulatory authority are implemented by civil servants or non-elected officials (most of the time). Historically, a bureaucracy was a government administration managed by departments ...
while strengthening public services
A public service or service of general (economic) interest is any service (economics), service intended to address the needs of aggregate members of a community, whether provided directly by a public sector agency, via public financing availab ...
. The party also called for reforms to the Netherlands' employment policy, proposed reducing the number of civil servants and abolishing permanent contracts for government employees. It also wanted to revise and strongly restrict immigration and asylum policies, particularly from Islamic societies, as well as put an end to the Dutch government's policy of pursuing multiculturalism
Multiculturalism is the coexistence of multiple cultures. The word is used in sociology, in political philosophy, and colloquially. In sociology and everyday usage, it is usually a synonym for ''Pluralism (political theory), ethnic'' or cultura ...
. Instead, the party argued for compulsory policies that existing immigrants learn Dutch and become integrated while future immigration would be reduced or halted until existing immigrants had been assimilated. However, Fortuyn also maintained that asylum seekers or illegal immigrants who had been living in the Netherlands for a long period should not be deported and instead be pardoned and offered a path to citizenship if they demonstrated the ability to assimilate into Dutch society and had not committed crimes while potential migrants would be offered financial incentives to stay in their own country. During the 2002 election and cabinet formation, the LPF proposed that asylum seekers who already had been in the Netherlands for more than five years could be pardoned while the government should temporarily stop all future immigration and asylum intake. In the First Balkenende cabinet
The first Balkenende cabinet was the executive branch of the Netherlands government from 22 July 2002 until 27 May 2003. The cabinet was formed by the Christian-democratic Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), the nationalistic Pim Fortuyn L ...
, LPF immigration minister Hilbrand Nawijn proposed the ''One-off Regulation 2003'' which would give a grace period for long-term asylum seekers to gain residency while asylum migration would be frozen for a period, however the cabinet collapsed before this could be effectuated. The party also supported the right to freedom of speech
Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The rights, right to freedom of expression has been r ...
and took a socially liberal
Social liberalism is a political philosophy and variety of liberalism that endorses social justice, social services, a mixed economy, and the expansion of civil and political rights, as opposed to classical liberalism which favors limited g ...
stance on issues such as gay rights, soft drug legalization and gender equality.
The LPF also supported reforming the Dutch economic model, arguing that outdated bureaucracy and welfare systems had created psychological and physical barriers to entrepreneurship and modernization of the economy. Fortuyn supported locating workplaces, smaller schools and regional hospitals closer to communities, expanding internet infrastructure outside of cities and replacing parts of the state with digital technology. Some political historians describe the LPF as supporting "market populist" ideas and holding both a free market vision while stressing communitarian ideas and being one of the first European populist parties associated with a rise in anti-globalization arguments.
Foreign policy
Although the LPF was established post-9/11
The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...
, Fortuyn had already developed a worldview based on the "clash between civilizations", namely between "modernity" and Islam, or Western society
Western culture, also known as Western civilization, European civilization, Occidental culture, Western society, or simply the West, refers to the Cultural heritage, internally diverse culture of the Western world. The term "Western" encompas ...
and Islamic culture
Islamic cultures or Muslim cultures refers to the historic cultural practices that developed among the various peoples living in the Muslim world. These practices, while not always religious in nature, are generally influenced by aspects of Islam ...
. The LPF supported NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...
, but was eurosceptic
Euroscepticism, also spelled as Euroskepticism or EU-scepticism, is a political position involving criticism of the European Union (EU) and European integration. It ranges from those who oppose some EU institutions and policies and seek refor ...
and saw the European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...
as a "bureaucracy which barely interests its citizens, let alone inspires them." The party was against the euro
The euro (currency symbol, symbol: euro sign, €; ISO 4217, currency code: EUR) is the official currency of 20 of the Member state of the European Union, member states of the European Union. This group of states is officially known as the ...
currency (which the Netherlands had adopted in 1999), EU influence over Dutch domestic regulation, and opposed the Netherlands participating in the European Schengen agreement
The Schengen Agreement ( , ) is a treaty which led to the creation of Europe's Schengen Area, in which internal border checks have largely been abolished. It was signed on 14 June 1985, near the town of Schengen, Luxembourg, by five of the t ...
. Fortuyn also campaigned to reduce Dutch financial contributions to the European Union
The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...
and criticised the EU for being "elite" and "technocratic". The party however did not oppose the principle of economic and political cooperation between European countries and the project of European integration
European integration is the process of political, legal, social, regional and economic integration of states wholly or partially in Europe, or nearby. European integration has primarily but not exclusively come about through the European Union ...
in general, but rather the EU's present organization, and what it regarded as its lack of democracy
Democracy (from , ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which political power is vested in the people or the population of a state. Under a minimalist definition of democracy, rulers are elected through competitiv ...
, excessive bureaucracy and threat to national sovereignty. The LPF also warned that unopposed EU expansion would lead to the Netherlands becoming absorbed into a Federal Superstate in which Dutch identity would be lost. Opposing the full membership of Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
, Albania
Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...
, Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
, Belarus
Belarus, officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Russia to the east and northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Belarus spans an a ...
and Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
, the LPF maintained that the European Union "shouldn't cross the Bosporus
The Bosporus or Bosphorus Strait ( ; , colloquially ) is a natural strait and an internationally significant waterway located in Istanbul, Turkey. The Bosporus connects the Black Sea to the Sea of Marmara and forms one of the continental bo ...
and the Ural". The LPF was also supportive of Israel
Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...
.
Legacy
Fortuyn's political heritage became scattered among various politicians in the Netherlands, several of whom had begun their careers in the LPF and tried founding parties of their own, most of which were unsuccessful. These included Marco Pastors and Joost Eerdmans
Bernard Johannes "Joost" Eerdmans (born 9 January 1971) is a Dutch politician, broadcaster, journalist and former civil servant who has served as Leader of JA21 since 18 December 2020, a party he co-founded with Annabel Nanninga. Elected to th ...
, founders of the One NL, Winny de Jong of DeConservatieven.nl, and Hilbrand Nawijn, leader of the Party for the Netherlands—none of which managed to win a seat in the 2003 or 2006 elections. Other parties included Forza! Nederland founded by Paul Meijer and Fleur Agema, both former members of the LPF branch on the States-Provincial
The provincial council (, PS), also known as the States-Provincial, is the provincial parliament and legislative assembly in each of the provinces of the Netherlands. It is elected for each province simultaneously once every four years and has ...
of North Holland
North Holland (, ) is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands in the northwestern part of the country. It is located on the North Sea, north of South Holland and Utrecht (province), Utrecht, and west of Friesland and Flevola ...
. The LPF also influenced politicians in the Flemish region of Belgium
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
, such as lawyer and Open VLD
The Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats (, , Open Vld) is a Flemish liberal political party in Belgium. The party has been described as centre-right and has smaller factions within the party that have conservative liberal and social liberal ...
member Hugo Coveliers who went on to found the VLOTT party based on Fortuyn's ideas, and Jean-Marie Dedecker
Jean-Marie Louis Dedecker (born 13 June 1952) is a Belgian politician.
In 1999 and 2003, Dedecker was directly elected to the Belgian Senate for the Flemish Liberals and Democrats (VLD). In 2004, he ran for a seat in the Flemish Parliament, a ...
and his Lijst Dedecker party. However, in the Netherlands the LPF became squeezed out by the tougher line on immigration and integration issues taken by mainstream politicians, such as Minister for Integration and Immigration Rita Verdonk, who had largely adopted Fortuyn's policies. By the end of the decade, former LPF supporters had mostly moved to support Geert Wilders
Geert Wilders (born 6 September 1963) is a Dutch politician who has led the far-right Party for Freedom (PVV) since he founded it in 2006. He is also the party's leader in the House of Representatives. Wilders is best known for his right-wing p ...
and his Party for Freedom
The Party for Freedom ( , PVV) is a right-wing populist, far-right political party in the Netherlands. Geert Wilders is the founder, party leader, and sole registered member of the party.
Founded in 2006 as the successor to Wilders' one-ma ...
(PVV).[ Traces of Fortuyn's legacy have remained at a national political level with former LPF politician Fleur Agema being elected to parliament for the Party for Freedom and later becoming ]Deputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands
The deputy prime minister of the Netherlands ( or ) is the official Deputy prime minister, deputy of the head of government of the Netherlands. In the absence of the prime minister of the Netherlands the deputy prime minister takes over his fun ...
in 2024.[
In February 2006, soon before it fell out of parliament, the scholar Hans Jansen organised a conference in cooperation with the scientific committee of the LPF in the House of Representatives building that brought together several international anti-Islam figures, including ]Bat Ye'or
Gisèle Littman (; born 1933), better known by her pen name Bat Ye'or (, ''Daughter of the Nile''), is an Egyptian-born, British-Swiss author and historian, known for her promulgation of the Eurabia conspiracy theory. She claims that Islam, and ...
, Daniel Pipes, Geert Wilders
Geert Wilders (born 6 September 1963) is a Dutch politician who has led the far-right Party for Freedom (PVV) since he founded it in 2006. He is also the party's leader in the House of Representatives. Wilders is best known for his right-wing p ...
, Robert Spencer, Bruce Bawer, Lars Hedegaard, Ibn Warraq
Ibn Warraq (born 1946) is the pen name of an anonymous author critical of Islam. He is the founder of the Institute for the Secularisation of Islamic Society and used to be a senior research fellow at the Center for Inquiry, focusing on Qurani ...
, Paul Beliën
Paul Beliën (born 1959) is a Flemish Belgian political operative, writer, and former journalist and founder of the right-wing blog '' The Brussels Journal''.
Beliën has a Master of Laws with specialisations in European and social security l ...
and Peder "Fjordman" Jensen. This movement would eventually become known as the counter-jihad movement.
In 2020, Eerdemans founded the JA21 party which claims to want to help "Fortuyn's ideas return to the House of Representatives".
Although dissolved at national level, the name ''Pim Fortuyn List'' continued to be used for a period at municipal level by local branches that split off from the LPF in Eindhoven
Eindhoven ( ; ) is a city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, located in the southern Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Brabant, of which it is the largest municipality, and is also locat ...
, Boornsterhem, Westland and The Hague
The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...
. As of 2018, the last remaining local party using ''Pim Fortuyn List'' were in Eindhoven and Westland which competed in the municipal elections under the names ''LPF Eindhoven'' and ''LPF Westland.'' In 2022 a new local Pim Fortuyn List entered the municipal elections in the city of Breda
Breda ( , , , ) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the southern part of the Netherlands, located in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of North Brabant. ...
winning one seat in the council. The LPF's youth-wing the ''Jonge Fortuynisten'' continues to remain active as an independent organisation and is affiliated to LPF Eindhoven.
Election results
House of Representatives
European Parliament
Leadership
* Leader
Leadership, is defined as the ability of an individual, group, or organization to "", influence, or guide other individuals, teams, or organizations.
"Leadership" is a contested term. Specialist literature debates various viewpoints on the co ...
** Pim Fortuyn
Wilhelmus Simon Petrus Fortuijn, known as Pim Fortuyn (; 19 February 1948 – 6 May 2002), was a Dutch politician, author, civil servant, businessman, sociologist and academic who founded the party Pim Fortuyn List (Lijst Pim Fortuyn or LPF) in ...
(14 February 2002 – 6 May 2002) ( †)
** ''Vacant'' (6 May 2002 – 16 May 2002)
** Mat Herben (16 May 2002 – 28 August 2002)
** Harry Wijnschenk
Hartog Hank Richard "Harry" Wijnschenk (born 24 January 1964 in Amsterdam) is a former Netherlands, Dutch politician. From 2002 to 2003 he was an MP (NL), MP for the Pim Fortuyn List (LPF), and later for the Wijnschenk Group. He briefly served a ...
(28 August 2002 – 16 October 2002)
** Mat Herben (16 October 2002 – 5 October 2004)
** Gerard van As (5 October 2004 – 17 August 2006)
** Mat Herben (17 August 2006 – 30 September 2006)
** Olaf Stuger (30 September 2006 – 30 November 2006)
** ''Vacant'' (30 November 2006 – 1 January 2008)
* Chairmen
** Pim Fortuyn (14 February 2002 – 6 May 2002) ( †)
** Peter Langendam (11 May 2002 – 14 May 2002)
** Ed Maas (3 July 2002 – 13 October 2003)
** Sergej Moleveld (31 August 2004 – 12 November 2004)
** Bert Snel (10 December 2004 – 1 January 2008)
* Parliamentary leader
A parliamentary leader is a political title or a descriptive term used in various countries to designate the person leading a parliamentary group or caucus in a legislature, legislative body, whether it be a national or sub-national legislature. ...
s in the Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
** Rob Hessing (10 June 2003 – 12 June 2007)
* Parliamentary leader
A parliamentary leader is a political title or a descriptive term used in various countries to designate the person leading a parliamentary group or caucus in a legislature, legislative body, whether it be a national or sub-national legislature. ...
s in the House of Representatives
House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...
** Mat Herben (23 May 2002 – 28 August 2002)
** Harry Wijnschenk (28 August 2002 – 16 October 2002)
** Mat Herben (16 October 2002 – 5 October 2004)
** Gerard van As (5 October 2004 – 17 August 2006)
** Mat Herben (17 August 2006 – 30 November 2006)
* Lead candidate – General election
A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from By-election, by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. Gener ...
** Pim Fortuyn
Wilhelmus Simon Petrus Fortuijn, known as Pim Fortuyn (; 19 February 1948 – 6 May 2002), was a Dutch politician, author, civil servant, businessman, sociologist and academic who founded the party Pim Fortuyn List (Lijst Pim Fortuyn or LPF) in ...
– 2002
The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...
** Mat Herben – 2003
2003 was designated by the United Nations as the International Year of Fresh water, Freshwater.
In 2003, a Multi-National Force – Iraq, United States-led coalition 2003 invasion of Iraq, invaded Iraq, starting the Iraq War.
Demographic ...
** Olaf Stuger – 2006
2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification.
Events
January
* January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute.
* January 12 – A stampede during t ...
* Lead candidate – Senate election
** Bob Smalhout – 2003
See also
* Party for Freedom
The Party for Freedom ( , PVV) is a right-wing populist, far-right political party in the Netherlands. Geert Wilders is the founder, party leader, and sole registered member of the party.
Founded in 2006 as the successor to Wilders' one-ma ...
(PVV) - Party founded in 2006.
* Forum for Democracy
Forum for Democracy ( ; FvD) is a far-right political party in the Netherlands, originally founded as a think tank by Thierry Baudet and Henk Otten in 2015 before registering itself as a party the following year. The FvD first participated i ...
(FvD) – Party founded in 2016
* JA21 – Offshoot of FvD founded by Eerdmans in 2021
References
Citations
Bibliography
*
*
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pim Fortuyn List
2002 establishments in the Netherlands
2008 disestablishments in the Netherlands
Anti-Islam political parties in Europe
Anti-Islam sentiment in the Netherlands
Classical liberal parties
Conservative parties in the Netherlands
Counter-jihad
Defunct conservative parties
Defunct liberal political parties
Defunct nationalist parties in the Netherlands
Defunct political parties in the Netherlands
Eurosceptic parties in the Netherlands
Liberal parties in the Netherlands
National liberal parties
Organisations based in Rotterdam
Political parties established in 2002
Political parties disestablished in 2008
Republican parties
Republicanism in the Netherlands
Right-wing populism in the Netherlands
Right-wing populist parties
Secularism in the Netherlands