The election pacts agreed by the Labour party (PvdA) and GroenLinks in 10 of the 12 provinces could deny the government a majority in the upper house of parliament or senate after next week’s vote.

The fact that the opposition parties have formed so many alliances means the ruling coalition needs an extra 2% of the votes in next week’s provincial elections, according to opinion pollster Maurice de Hond.
Alliances come into play when the final seats are distributed. By adding support from alliance partners, a party can get enough votes to win an extra seat.