Markuszower forms new far-right party after split with Wilders

Three months after breaking away from Geert Wilders’ far-right PVV, Gidi Markuszower and his six fellow MPs have established a new party under the name of De Nederlandse Alliantie (DNA).

The group, whose name means “the Dutch Alliance” and has a strand of DNA as its logo, describes itself on its website as a party that stands for a “resilient, prosperous and self-aware Netherlands”.

DNA is expected to take the same hardline nationalist line as the PVV, rejecting multiculturalism and vowing to fight for “Judeo-Christian values”, the Dutch language and strict border controls.

Markuszower split from the PVV in January after Wilders refused to discuss a slate of demands to reform the party, including admitting members and creating a mechanism to replace the leader.

Markuszower and his fellow MPs were also critical of Wilders’ performance during last year’s election campaign, after the PVV was overtaken as the largest party by the progressive liberal D66.

The 48-year-old was previously one of Wilders’ closest political confidants and a personal friend, dining in restaurants and going on holidays together with their respective spouses.

Fall-out with Wilders

But he admitted in later interviews that he had never forgiven Wilders for the way he was blocked as minister for asylum in Dick Schoof’s cabinet, after the PVV became the largest party in the November 2023 election.

Wilders withdrew Markuszower as a candidate after the security service AIVD flagged up his connections to a foreign power, widely assumed to be Israel. Markuszower was born in Tel Aviv and, like Wilders, is a strident supporter of Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.

Markuszower has made a point of allowing new members to join for no cost, in contrast to the PVV, which has no members other than Wilders. He aims to be in a position to field candidates for next year’s provincial assembly elections, which will also determine the make-up of the next Senate.

He also announced on Tuesday he has hired the former VVD immigration and asylum minister Rita Verdonk as a political adviser. Verdonk, 68, was embroiled in the row over whether to revoke the citizenship of Ayaan Hirsi Ali, then a VVD MP, in 2006, which triggered the downfall of Jan Peter Balkenende’s second cabinet.

DNA joins a clutch of parties to the right of the liberal VVD that hold 47 seats altogether, along with the PVV, JA21, Forum voor Democratie and the farmers’ party BBB.

Unlike Wilders, Markuszower says he is prepared to negotiate with the minority coalition of D66, CDA and VVD, giving Rob Jetten more options on the right to find the 10 votes his government needs to steer every piece of legislation through the lower house.

However, DNA has no seats in the Senate, where the picture is even more complicated. The ruling parties have just 21 of the 75 seats, 17 short of a majority.