The Tegenpartij (''Counterparty'', but also ''opponent'') was a Dutch

fictional Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying character (arts), individuals, events, or setting (narrative), places that are imagination, imaginary or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent ...

political party A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific political ideology, ...

, founded in 1979 by the Dutch comedic duo Van Kooten en De Bie. They played the characters Jacobse and Van Es, two ''vrije jongens'' (''free guys'', literally), played by respectively Kees van Kooten and

Wim de Bie Willem Philippe "Wim" de Bie (; 17 May 1939 – 27 March 2023) was a Dutch comedian, writer and singer. He formed the comedy duo Van Kooten en De Bie with Kees van Kooten. G.J. van Bork,Bie, Wim de, ''Schrijvers en dichters'', 2002. Retrieved ...

. Jacobse and Van Es were originally two scoundrels, who eventually founded their own political party: The Tegenpartij. They described it as ''the party for all Dutchmen who can no longer stand the Netherlands''. Van Kooten and De Bie were trying to fight the populist tendencies of some of the other parties with their parody, but things turned out a bit differently: the Tegenpartij became so popular that it might well have gained several seats in parliament if it had actually taken part in elections. The party was finally 'disbanded' on May 10, 1981, just before the elections. In a final sketch, characters Jacobse and Van Es were shot and killed while single-handedly attempting a coup at the

Binnenhof The Binnenhof (; ) is a complex of buildings in the city centre of The Hague, Netherlands, next to the Hofvijver (Court Pond). It houses the meeting place of both houses of the States General of the Netherlands, as well as the Ministry of Gener ...

, the center of Dutch

politics Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

Quotes

;From the

party platform A political party platform (American English), party program, or party manifesto (preferential term in British and often Commonwealth English) is a formal set of principal goals which are supported by a political party or individual candidate, t ...

* ''Stemp de Tegenpartij!'' (''Vote Counterparty!'') The word "stemp" is an Urban Haguenese pronunciation of "stem", meaning "vote" * ''Samen voor ons eigen'' (''Together for ourselves'') * ''Geen gezeik, iedereen rijk'' (''No whining, riches for all'') ;Jacobse en Van Es * ''Mogen wij éven overgeven?'' (''May we please vomit now?'')

References

* {{cite web, url=http://geschiedenis.vpro.nl/artikelen/43210541/, title=De Tegenpartij, publisher=Geschiedenis 24, date=12 March 2010, accessdate=3 May 2010 Political parties in the Netherlands Fictional political parties Political controversies in television Television controversies in the Netherlands Television characters introduced in 1979 Joke political parties in the Netherlands