Shaken not Stirred

On the 12th of March, last Friday, the NRC handelsblad (newspaper) website reported that the PvdA was/is still the largest party here in Rotterdam following the municipal elections on March 3rd. If you'll remember, due to some inconsistencies at the polling stations and the extremely slim margin that the PvdA took office over Leefbare Rotterdam, our mayor Aboutaleb ordered a recount of the votes in order to quash growing discontent as led by members of the Leefbare Rotterdam Party. The result is that the PvdA is now 0.3 percent in the lead over Leefbare Rotterdam as oppose to the 0.2 percent in the original count. This of course does not change the fact that each party will have 14 seats in the newly formed Rotterdam government. It also has spawned many stories concerning the inability of these parties to work together. I guess that Rotterdammers will get used to stalemate politics over the next couple of years...how dreary!

On the same day, it was made known that the Dutch labour party leader (PvdA) Wouter Bos would be stepping down as the head of the upcoming election for familial reasons (why is it that whenever I hear that family is the reason for a politician to be quiting their political roles that I tend to be suspicious? hmmmm, nevermind). In his stead he would like Job Cohen, the present Mayor of Amsterdam, to take up the party's reigns for the June 9th national elections. Cohen heartily accepted and immediately resigned his post as Mayor. Cohen was then replaced yesterday by Frank de Wolf.

These stories were sandwiched in between the death of a founding member of the D'66 (a middle of the road party that did well in the municipal elections) on March 11th and the stepping down of a female minister from the second kabinet, Ms. L. Griffith from the VVD party (right-wing rather nationalism party...but not Wilders' PVV) today. Speaking of Wilders' it was reported yesterday that he fell ill in Germany and sought medical attention. He later sent an sms to let everyone know that he was 'prima!' and so he will continue as a political force.

It appears that politics is rather rocky these days in the Netherlands as people are falling like dominos from their various positions and only sometimes finding new roles. Although it hasn't been hit by a physical earthquake as other countries have recently experienced around the world, the Netherlands is dealing with a political earthquake, where the major event was the falling of the government (the epicenter was in Den Haag) and with the aftershocks being felt in Amsterdam, Den Haag and Rotterdam, and on and on.

Whatever it is, the politics these days are definitely shaken rather than just stirred.