The ruling government parties’ majority in the Senate has decreased by one seat, the parliamentary documentation centre (PDC) at Leiden University announced yesterday. The Christian Democrats (CDA), ChristenUnie and Labour (PvdA) can count on 40 of the 75 seats based on the result of last week’s provincial elections.

The PDC bases its prognosis on the final voting figures released yesterday by the election council. Labour will now receive 21 seats instead of the 22 which were forecast last Wednesday. The Independent Senate Party, which represents several regional parties, will keep its current seat.
The PDC’s Bert van den Braak pointed out in the Volkskrant that other differences are still possible. The fundamentalist Christian SGP could still win an extra seat if the party merges its candidates with those of the ChristenUnie. This would be to the detriment of the Christian Democrats.
The official vote will be taken at the end of May.