Amsterdam council has caused some bemusement in the Dutch capital by placing 10 large billboards across the city urging people, in English, to vote for the “house of representatives” – even though you need to be Dutch to actually vote.

A degree of fluency in Dutch is a prerequisite of adopting Dutch nationality in most cases.

“Cast your vote for the House of Representatives on 29 October”, the text states on the hoardings, which have been located in the city centre, as well as Noord, Oost, Zuid, Zuidoost and Nieuw West.

The name given to the second chamber, with its American overtones, is also likely to cause confusion. Many international workers refer to the chamber as “parliament” or even just the “Tweede Kamer”.

Local Volt party leader Juliet Broersen earlier got a motion through the city council calling on officials to provide better information in English for potential voters in the European and local elections but not the national vote.

And the English language billboards for the national elections are likely to confuse people even more, she told Dutch News. “It is well meant but they’ve got it wrong,” she said. “It is a missed opportunity.”

You need to be Dutch to vote in these elections,” she pointed out. “And this could have the opposite effect to our motion. We wanted to make it clear when you can vote, not spread confusion.”

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A spokeswoman for mayor Femke Halsema told Dutch News the city did not know how many Amsterdammers are Dutch but don’t speak the language. “But English is a global language and we reach more people than just native speakers,” she said.

In May 2024, Amsterdam also caused confusion among the international community with English poster campaign about a city wide referendum that was so off-message officials had signs made again.

Nevertheless local authorities are waking up to the power of the international vote in local and European elections and Amsterdam is planning an internationals meet-up day with deputy mayor and local D66 leader Melanie van der Horst on October 2.

Last week, The Hague city council held its first “meet your city council” night in English, aimed at addressing the low voting levels among internationals, with local elections coming up in March 2026.

Dutch nationals, EU nationals and other foreigners officially resident in the Netherlands for five years can vote in the local elections. European nationals can vote in the European elections, if they have registered in advance.