Protest vote or wrecking ball?

Many Dutch people feel unheard. The housing market is locked. Healthcare is creaking. Teachers see education under pressure. And the climate crisis hangs like a dark cloud over the next generations. These aren't imagined problems, they are real.

In such times, someone shouting: "I DO listen!" sounds attractive. For many voters, a vote for Geert Wilders feels like a protest, like a way to finally be heard. That need is understandable. The question is: what happens next? Is that protest vote a building block for solutions, or a wrecking ball for the rules that protect us all?

Democracy doesn't unravel in one night

Authoritarian leaders no longer seize power with tanks these days. They win elections and then slowly start shifting the rules. Courts lose their independence, media come under pressure, elections are arranged so that real choice disappears.

We see it in Hungary, Israel and even the US. It always happens step by step. And then suddenly it can't be stopped anymore. Why would we think the Netherlands is immune to this?

Why populism appeals

The attraction of populists doesn't come out of thin air:

• Fear and uncertainty – Those looking for a house experience hopelessness. Healthcare workers become exhausted. Parents see education struggling. In that context, it feels tempting when someone says: "I'll point you to the culprit." It offers grip, but no solution.
• Nostalgia – The past seems more attractive when the present feels chaotic. The promise of restoring order speaks to the imagination. But often it's about a dream image.
• Clarity – Clear slogans feel concrete. "Stop migration." "Our country first again." But do they really solve the shortages in healthcare and housing?

The concerns are legitimate. The question is: do simple oppositions lead us to solutions, or do they actually keep us from the choices that need to be made?

Where solutions can actually be found

What many voters sometimes forget: proposals are being made RIGHT NOW that DO directly address the problems everyone feels.

• Housing market – CDA and D66 want to accelerate building significantly, including more affordable rental and owner-occupied homes. VVD advocates for loosening regulations that hold up construction projects. Plans are also being developed to give young people access to homes faster, for example through starter homes or rent discounts.
• Healthcare – ChristenUnie and PvdA-GroenLinks focus on more say and less bureaucracy for healthcare providers. VVD wants to invest in innovation and prevention, so that healthcare remains affordable. These are very different angles, but they DO address the real problem: staff shortages and affordability.
• Education – Parties like D66, PvdA-GroenLinks AND VVD want higher salaries for teachers to make the profession attractive. It's also about smaller classes and more room for craftsmanship.
• Climate and energy – The center looks for combinations: VVD and CDA focus on nuclear energy, D66 and GroenLinks-PvdA on wind and solar. But the common denominator is clear: the Netherlands must become more independent from oil and gas and keep energy bills manageable.

So there ARE concrete building blocks, even outside the PVV.

The real danger: habituation

The danger isn't in one big blow. Democracy slowly unravels. A rule here, an exception there. Until we suddenly notice: the rules that protect us have shifted.

Why democracy remains worthwhile

Democracy is slow and messy. That's frustrating, but it's also the reason that power can be corrected without violence, and that disagreements don't become hostility.

Authoritarian systems seem faster and more stable. But often that's the silence of fewer rights, less criticism, less future.

The choice of now

Our vote determines not only who governs, but also under which rules that happens. Can judges remain independent? Do elections remain fair? Can journalists do their work? And: do we solve our concrete problems at the same time?

Building houses, making healthcare workable, strengthening education, keeping energy affordable and clean – that requires policy, not enemy images.

Invitation

A vote can express frustration. But a vote can also be a building block for solutions that move our country forward, without undermining the foundations of our freedom.

The invitation is simple: use your vote not only against what you fear, but FOR what you want to build. Affordable homes, strong healthcare, good education, future-proof climate policy. Center-right, center and center-left parties are working on that too, each with their own accents.

Those who only choose protest risk weakening rules that protect us all – left AND right.

Because history teaches: keys we give away, we rarely get back easily.