Low key campaign resumes ahead of Wednesday provincial vote

Political parties resumed campaigning for Wednesday’s provincial elections on Tuesday morning, after all but Forum voor Democratie called a halt in the wake of the Utrecht shootings.

After a meeting on Tuesday morning, campaign leaders said that their supporters would be back on the streets but that the approach would be more low-key ahead of tomorrow’s vote, the AD reported.

It is still unclear if tonight’s scheduled television debate between the main party leaders will take place, or whether priority will be given to a debate on the Utrecht shooting in parliament, the AD said.

FvD pressed ahead with its supporters’ meeting in Scheveningen on Monday evening and party leader Thierry Baudet used the event to draw a link between the shooting, immigration and the policies of the main conservative parties VVD and CDA.

Asked afterwards if he was capitalising on the murders, Baudet said ‘he did not recognise himself’ in the claim.

Capitalising

However, RTL political commentator Frits Wester described Baudet’s performance as low.

‘If you want to go ahead with a meeting and talk about what has happened with your supporters, I can understand that,’ he said on a television talk show. ‘But to use such an event, whether terrorism or relationship-related, to make a political point, is extremely low.’

FvD is set to do well in the provincial vote, the results of which will be used to determine the political make up of the upper house of parliament. Some polls indicate the anti-immigration and anti-EU FvD could emerge as the second biggest senate party behind the VVD.