Rutte Will Not Run For 5th Term After Gov't Falls, Ends 13Yrs As PM

Wires reporting comments from Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte stating that he will not run for a fifth term in office. This comes following the collapse of his coalition gov't on 7 July after fractious rows between governing parties regarding the country's immigration policies. Once snap elections are held it will bring an end to Rutte's 13 years as prime minister, the second longest current tenure for any EU leader behind only Hungary's Viktor Orban.

• The impact of the Rutte IV gov't collapse on Dutch politics could be significant. The Dutch electoral and political system lends itself to multi-party governing coalitions, which usually results in more moderate policy making by consensus. However, an end to the longest prime ministerial tenure in Dutch history will undoubtedly have a notable impact on the country's political environment.
• Moreover, opinion polling shows the populist agrarian Farmer-Citizen Movement (BBB) as on course to win a plurality of seats and therefore have the first opportunity to form a new gov't. Given the party's new status (only gaining prominence in 2022 due to protests by farmers against gov't emissions legislation), it is unclear who it could seek to work with.
• During the Rutte years, when by-and-large parties of the centre-left and centre-right would be drawn together to form coalitions. Following the next election, though, we could see coalitions of the right (BBB, Geert Wilders' Party for Freedom, JA21, Forum for Democracy) or of the left (Green Left, Party for the Animals, Socialist Party, Volt) formed resulting in a shift in policy direction.