The Farmer-Citizen Movement (BoerBurgerBeweging or BBB) has sent shockwaves through mainstream Dutch politics. In yesterday’s provincial elections, the BBB secured 15 out of 75 seats in the upper house of parliament and garnered nearly 20% of the vote. This remarkable performance positions the BBB to potentially become the largest political party in the Dutch Senate.
In this election, the pro-farmer party outperformed Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s liberal People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy. However, it might not have enough influence to derail the ruling coalition’s plans to significantly reduce nitrogen emissions from farms. Nevertheless, the BBB’s extraordinary success has raised questions about support for the government’s environmental policies, particularly its goal to reduce livestock numbers and potentially close up to 3,000 farms.
But what does this victory mean? And what does the party stand for?
The BBB has now become the third-largest political force in the country. In Wednesday’s elections, the party received the most votes in at least eight of the Netherlands’ 12 provinces. It is expected that reversing the government’s approach to nitrogen emissions will be a key focus for the party.
What are the party’s key policies?
Established in 2019, the party has strong connections with farmer protest groups and rural communities who have felt overlooked by the Rutte government.
The current leader of the party is Caroline van der Plas, a 55-year-old lawmaker and former agricultural journalist known for her signature green nail polish and a ring featuring an upside-down Dutch flag, symbolizing the farmer protests.
The party maintains a robust presence on social media, providing updates on its protests and showcasing the activities of farmers.
The BBB mission states: “Farmers cannot do without citizens, citizens cannot do without farmers. The countryside is good for roughly five to six million inhabitants of the Netherlands. Outside the four major cities, rural areas have different dynamics and lifestyles, in which neighborly assistance and joint – bottom-up – solving problems are self-evident.
BBB stands up for these residents, who do not recognize themselves in the government policy aimed at the big cities.”
The Farmer-Citizen Movement is committed to challenging the cabinet’s approach to the issue of nitrogen pollution, which Van der Plas describes as a ‘dogma dictated from The Hague.’
