The People's Party for Freedom and Democracy ( , VVD) is a conservative-liberal political party in the Netherlands. The VVD, whose forerunner was the Freedom Party, is a party of the

centre-right Centre-right politics is the set of right-wing politics, right-wing political ideologies that lean closer to the political centre. It is commonly associated with conservatism, Christian democracy, liberal conservatism, and conservative liberalis ...

that tries to promote

private enterprise A privately held company (or simply a private company) is a company whose Stock, shares and related rights or obligations are not offered for public subscription or publicly negotiated in their respective listed markets. Instead, the Private equi ...

and

economic liberalism Economic liberalism is a political and economic ideology that supports a market economy based on individualism and private property in the means of production. Adam Smith is considered one of the primary initial writers on economic liberalism ...

History

Founding

In 1947, the Freedom Party led by

Dirk Stikker Dirk Uipko Stikker (5 February 1897 – 23 December 1979) was a Dutch politician and diplomat of the defunct Liberal State Party (LSP), co-founder of the defunct Freedom Party (PvdV) and of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (V ...

and the Committee-Oud led by

Pieter Oud Pieter Jacobus Oud (5 December 1886 – 12 August 1968) was a Dutch politician of the Free-thinking Democratic League (VDB) and later co-founder of the Labour Party (PvdA) and the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) and historian. ...

started negotiations with the goal of a merger. The conservative liberal Freedom Party was a continuation of the

Liberal State Party The Liberal State Party, "the Freedom League" (, LSP), was a conservative liberal political party in the Netherlands from 1921 to 1948. It is historically linked to the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD), a major Dutch political part ...

, but was disappointed with only six seats in the 1946 general election. The Committee-Oud was a group of former members of the social liberal Free-thinking Democratic League (VDB), who had been dissatisfied with the social-democratic character of the Labour Party (PvdA), in which the VDB had merged with the Social Democratic Workers' Party as part of the breakthrough movement. As a result, the part was founded on 24 January 1948.

1948–1963: Oud

Between 1948 and 1952, the VVD took part in the broad cabinets led by the Labour Party

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Willem Drees Willem Drees Sr. (; 5 July 1886 – 14 May 1988) was a Dutch politician of the Social Democratic Workers' Party (Netherlands), Social Democratic Workers' Party (SDAP) and later co-founder of the Labour Party (Netherlands), Labour Party (PvdA) ...

. The party was a junior partner with only eight seats to the Catholic People's Party (KVP) and Labour Party, which both had around thirty seats (out of 100). The Drees cabinets laid the foundation for the

welfare state A welfare state is a form of government in which the State (polity), state (or a well-established network of social institutions) protects and promotes the economic and social well-being of its citizens, based upon the principles of equal oppor ...

and decolonisation of the

Dutch East Indies The Dutch East Indies, also known as the Netherlands East Indies (; ), was a Dutch Empire, Dutch colony with territory mostly comprising the modern state of Indonesia, which Proclamation of Indonesian Independence, declared independence on 17 Au ...

. In the general election of 1952 the VVD gained one seat, but did not join the government. In the general election of 1956 it increased its total, receiving thirteen seats, but was stayed out of government during the

cabinet formation Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filin ...

, until the general election of 1959, which was held early because of a cabinet crisis. This time it gained nineteen seats, and the party entered government alongside the Protestant Anti-Revolutionary Party (ARP), the Christian Historical Union (CHU) and the KVP.

1963–1971: Toxopeus and Geertsema

In 1963, Oud retired from politics, and was succeeded by the Minister of the Interior Edzo Toxopeus. With Toxopeus as its leader, the VVD lost three seats in the 1963 election, but remained in government after the 1963 cabinet formation. In 1962, a substantial group of disillusioned VVD members founded the Liberal Democratic Centre (, LDC) which was intended to introduce a more twentieth-century liberal direction to the

classical liberal Classical liberalism is a political tradition and a branch of liberalism that advocates free market and laissez-faire economics and civil liberties under the rule of law, with special emphasis on individual autonomy, limited government, eco ...

VVD. In 1966, frustrated with their hopeless efforts, left-wing LDC members joined a new political party, the

Democrats 66 Democrats 66 (; D66) is a social liberal and progressive political party in the Netherlands, which is positioned on the centre to centre-left of the political spectrum. It is a member of the Liberal International (LI) and the Alliance of Li ...

(D66). In 1965, there also occurred a conflict between VVD Ministers and their counterparts from the KVP and ARP in the Marijnen cabinet. The cabinet fell; without an election taking place, it was replaced by a KVP–ARP–PvdA cabinet under Jo Cals, which itself fell during the Night of Schmelzer the following year. In the subsequent 1967 election the VVD remained relatively stable and entered the De Jong cabinet. During this period the VVD had loose ties with other liberal organisations; together, these formed the neutral pillar. They included the liberal papers '' Nieuwe Rotterdamsche Courant'' and ''

Algemeen Handelsblad ''Algemeen Handelsblad'' was a Dutch daily newspaper founded in 1828 by stockbroker . Originally liberal, economically focused, and Amsterdam-based, the paper merged in 1970 with the ''Nieuwe Rotterdamse Courant'' to form ''NRC Handelsblad''. H ...

'', the broadcaster

AVRO Avro (an initialism of the founder's name) was a British aircraft manufacturer. Its designs include the Avro 504, used as a trainer in the First World War, the Avro Lancaster, one of the pre-eminent bombers of the Second World War, and the d ...

and the employers' organisation VNO.

1971–1994

In the Dutch general election of 1971, the VVD lost one seat and the cabinet lost its majority. A cabinet was formed by the Christian democratic parties, the VVD and the Labour Party offshoot Democratic Socialists '70. This cabinet collapsed after a few months. Meanwhile, the charismatic young MP Hans Wiegel had attracted considerable attention. He became the new leader of the VVD. In 1971, he became the new parliamentary leader, and he was appointed lead candidate in 1972. Under Wiegel's leadership, the party oriented towards a new political course, aiming to reform the welfare state and cut taxes. Wiegel did not shrink from conflict with the Labour Party and the

trade union A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...

s. With this new course came a new electorate:

working-class The working class is a subset of employees who are compensated with wage or salary-based contracts, whose exact membership varies from definition to definition. Members of the working class rely primarily upon earnings from wage labour. Most c ...

and middle-class voters who, because of individualisation and depillarisation, were more easy to attract. The course proved to be profitable: in the heavily polarised general election of 1972, the VVD gained six seats. The VVD was kept out of government by the social democratic and Christian democratic Den Uyl cabinet. Although the ties between the VVD and other organisations within the neutral pillar became ever looser, the number of neutral organisations friendly to the VVD grew. The

TROS TROS, originally an acronym for Televisie Radio Omroep Stichting ("Television Radio Broadcasting Foundation"), was a Dutch television and radio organisation part of the Dutch public broadcasting system. This broadcasting association was partic ...

and later Veronica, new broadcasters which entered the

Netherlands Public Broadcasting (; abbreviated to NPO ; literally "Dutch Public Broadcaster") or Dutch Foundation for Public Broadcasting () is a Dutch public broadcasting organisation that administers public broadcasting services in the Netherlands. NPO is also the owner of ...

, were friendly to the VVD. In 1977, the VVD again won six seats, bringing its total to twenty-eight seats. When lengthy formation talks between the social democrats and Christian democrats eventually led to a final break between the two parties, the VVD formed cabinet with the

Christian Democratic Appeal The Christian Democratic Appeal ( , CDA) is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in the Netherlands. Formed as a federation in 1975 by the Catholic People's Party, the Anti-Revolutionary Party, and the Christian Historical ...

(CDA), with a majority of only two seats. In the general election of 1981, the VVD lost two seats and its partner the CDA lost even more. The cabinet was without a majority and a CDA, Labour and D66 cabinet was formed, falling after only a few months. In 1982, Hans Wiegel left Parliament to become Queen's Commissioner in

Friesland Friesland ( ; ; official ), historically and traditionally known as Frisia (), named after the Frisians, is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands located in the country's northern part. It is situated west of Groningen (p ...

and was succeeded by Ed Nijpels. In the general election of 1982 Nijpels' VVD gained ten seats, bringing its total up to 36. Once again, it formed the First Lubbers cabinet with the CDA. The cabinet began a programme of radical reform of the welfare state, which is still in place today. The VVD lost nine seats in the 1986 election but the cabinet nonetheless retained its majority. The losses were blamed on Nijpels, who stood down as leader of the VVD. He was succeeded by Joris Voorhoeve. In 1989 the CDA–VVD cabinet fell over a minor issue, and the VVD lost five seats in the subsequent election, leaving only twenty-two. The VVD was kept out of government, and Voorhoeve stood down and was succeeded by

Frits Bolkestein Frederik "Frits" Bolkestein (; 4 April 1933 – 17 February 2025) was a Dutch politician and energy executive who served as Leader of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) from 1990 to 1998 and List of European Commissioners by nati ...

1994–2006

Bolkestein's VVD was one of the winners of the general election of 1994: the party gained nine seats. It formed an unprecedented government with the Labour Party (PvdA) and the social liberal

. The so-called "

purple Purple is a color similar in appearance to violet light. In the RYB color model historically used in the arts, purple is a secondary color created by combining red and blue pigments. In the CMYK color model used in modern printing, purple is ...

cabinet" led by

Wim Kok Willem Kok (; 29 September 1938 – 20 October 2018) was a Dutch politician and trade union leader who served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 22 August 1994 until 22 July 2002.1998 election, becoming the second largest party in parliament with thirty-eight seats. The VVD formed a second Purple cabinet with the Labour Party and D66. Bolkestein left Dutch politics in 1999 to become

European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the primary Executive (government), executive arm of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with a number of European Commissioner, members of the Commission (directorial system, informall ...

er. He was replaced by the more technocratic and social liberal Hans Dijkstal. In the heavily polarised Dutch general election of 2002, dominated by the rise and murder of

Pim Fortuyn Wilhelmus Simon Petrus Fortuijn, known as Pim Fortuyn (; 19 February 1948 – 6 May 2002), was a Dutch politician, author, civil servant, businessman, sociologist and academic who founded the party Pim Fortuyn List (Lijst Pim Fortuyn or LPF) in ...

, the VVD lost fourteen seats, leaving only twenty-four. The VVD nonetheless entered a cabinet with the Christian Democratic Appeal and the

Pim Fortuyn List The Pim Fortuyn List (, LPF) was a political party in the Netherlands that existed from 2002 to 2008 at a national level and was named after its eponymous founder Pim Fortuyn, a former university professor and political columnist. The party was ...

(LPF). Dijkstal stood down and was replaced by the popular former Minister of Finance

Gerrit Zalm Gerrit Zalm (; born 6 May 1952) is a retired Dutch people, Dutch politician of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) and businessman. Zalm studied Economics at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, obtaining a Master of Economics degree ...

. After a few months, Zalm "pulled the plug" on the First Balkenende cabinet, after infighting between LPF ministers Eduard Bomhoff and Herman Heinsbroek. GZalm

In the subsequent general election of 2003, the VVD with

as lead candidate gained four seats, making a total of twenty-eight. The party had expected to do much better, having adopted most of Fortuyn's proposals on immigration and integration. The VVD unwillingly entered the Second Balkenende cabinet with Zalm returning as Minister of Finance and as

Deputy Prime Minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a Minister (government), government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to th ...

. On 2 September 2004,

Geert Wilders Geert Wilders (born 6 September 1963) is a Dutch politician who has led the far-right Party for Freedom (PVV) since he founded it in 2006. He is also the party's leader in the House of Representatives. Wilders is best known for his right-wing p ...

, a Member of the House of Representatives, left the party after a dispute with

parliamentary leader A parliamentary leader is a political title or a descriptive term used in various countries to designate the person leading a parliamentary group or caucus in a legislature, legislative body, whether it be a national or sub-national legislature. ...

Van Aartsen. He chose to continue as an

Independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

in the House of Representatives. On 27 November 2004 Zalm was succeeded as party leader by the parliamentary leader in the House Jozias van Aartsen.

2006–2023: Rutte

In 2006, the party lost a considerable number of seats in the municipal elections, prompting parliamentary leader Van Aartsen to step down. Willibrord van Beek was subsequently appointed parliamentary leader ''ad interim''. In the subsequent party leadership election

Mark Rutte Mark Rutte (; born 14 February 1967) is a Dutch politician who has served as the 14th Secretary General of NATO, secretary general of NATO since October 2024. He previously served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands, prime minister of the Neth ...

was elected as the leader, defeating Rita Verdonk and Jelleke Veenendaal. The general election of 2006 did not start off well for the VVD: Mark Rutte was criticised by his own parliamentary party for being invisible in the campaign, and he was unable to break the attention away from the duel between then-Prime Minister

Jan Peter Balkenende Jan Pieter Balkenende Jr. ( ; born 7 May 1956), commonly known as Jan Peter Balkenende, is a Dutch jurist and politician of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) who served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 22 July 2002 to 14 October 20 ...

of the Christian democrats and

Wouter Bos Wouter Jacob Bos (; born 14 July 1963) is a retired Dutch politician of the Labour Party (PvdA) and businessman. Bos attended the Christian Gymnasium in Zeist from June 1975 until July 1980 and applied at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam in ...

of the Labour Party. However, the VVD's campaign started relatively late. The election polls showed losses for the VVD; the former VVD deputy Prime Minister Hans Wiegel blamed a poor VVD campaign for this, caused by the heavily contested VVD leadership run-off between Mark Rutte and Rita Verdonk earlier in the year. Verdonk had her eyes on the deputy-minister post, while cabinet posts are normally decided upon by the political leader of the VVD. On election day, the party received enough votes for twenty-two seats, a loss of six seats. When the official election results were announced on Monday 27 November 2006, preferential votes became known as well, showing that Rita Verdonk, the second candidate on the list, had obtained more votes than the VVD's lead candidate, Mark Rutte. Rutte had received 553,200 votes, while Verdonk had received 620,555. This led Verdonk to call for a party commission that would investigate the party leadership position, as a consequence of the situation of her obtaining more votes in the general election than Rutte, creating a short-lived crisis in the party. A crisis was averted when Rutte called for an ultimatum on his leadership, which Verdonk had to reconcile to, by rejecting her proposal for a party commission. During 2007, signs of VVD infighting continued to play in the media. In June 2007, the former VVD minister Dekker presented a report on the previous election, showing that the VVD lacked clear leadership roles, however the report did not single out individuals for blame for the party's losses. After Verdonk renewed her criticism of the party in September 2007, she was expelled from the parliamentary faction, and subsequently relinquished her membership of the party, after reconciliation attempts had proven futile. Verdonk started her own political movement, Proud of the Netherlands, subsequently. In opinion polls held after Verdonk's exit, the VVD was set to lose close to ten parliamentary seats in the next election. After the 2010 general election the VVD became the largest party with 31 seats and was the senior party in a

minority First Rutte cabinet with the

supported by the

Party for Freedom The Party for Freedom ( , PVV) is a right-wing populist, far-right political party in the Netherlands. Geert Wilders is the founder, party leader, and sole registered member of the party. Founded in 2006 as the successor to Wilders' one-ma ...

(PVV) of

to obtain a majority. Rutte was sworn in as Prime Minister on 21 October 2010. Not only was it the first time that the VVD had led a government, but it was the first liberal-led government in 92 years. However, on 21 April 2012, after failed negotiations with the PVV on renewed budget cuts, the government became unstable and Mark Rutte deemed it likely that a new election would be held in 2012. On election day, 12 September 2012, the VVD remained the largest party in parliament, winning 41 seats, a gain of 10 seats. After the 2012 general election, the VVD entered into a ruling coalition with the Labour Party as its junior coalition partner. This coalition lasted a full term, but lost its majority at the 2017 election; the VVD itself lost eight seats, though remained the largest party with 33. Rutte became Prime Minister again, forming a centre-right green cabinet with the

and the Christian Union. In March 2021, VVD was the winner of the

general election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from By-election, by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. Gener ...

, securing 34 out of 150 seats. Prime Minister Mark Rutte, in power since 2010, formed his fourth VVD-led coalition.

2023–present: Yeşilgöz

After the fourth Rutte cabinet broke down due to disagreements over migration policy, a new election was called for 22 November 2023. Rutte announced that he would step down as leader of the VVD.

Dilan Yeşilgöz Dilan Yeşilgöz-Zegerius (; born 18 June 1977) is a Dutch politician who has served as Leader of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) since 2023. She also served as List of Ministers of Justice of the Netherlands, Minister of Ju ...

became the new leader of the party in August 2023 after running unopposed in the leadership election. Following the 2023 general election, the VVD was reduced to 24 seats in the House of Representatives. It entered formation talks with the Party for Freedom, the election winner, and the new parties New Social Contract and Farmer–Citizen Movement, leading to the right-wing Schoof cabinet.

Ideology and policies

The VVD is described as conservative-liberal,

liberal-conservative Liberal conservatism is a political ideology combining conservative policies with liberal stances, especially on economic issues but also on social and ethical matters, representing a brand of political conservatism strongly influenced by libe ...

, and

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

. It was also described as

and

libertarian Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...

by sources between 2006 and 2012. The VVD describes itself as a party founded on a liberal philosophy. Traditionally, the party is the most ardent supporter of '

free market In economics, a free market is an economic market (economics), system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of ...

s' of all Dutch political parties, promoting political,

classical liberalism Classical liberalism is a political tradition and a branch of liberalism that advocates free market and laissez-faire economics and civil liberties under the rule of law, with special emphasis on individual autonomy, limited governmen ...

cultural liberalism Cultural liberalism is a social philosophy which expresses the social dimension of liberalism and advocates the freedom of individuals to choose whether to conform to cultural norms. In the words of Henry David Thoreau, it is often expressed ...

. In contrast to this, it has helped build the

since 1945. After 1971, the party became more

populist Populism is a contested concept used to refer to a variety of political stances that emphasize the idea of the " common people" and often position this group in opposition to a perceived elite. It is frequently associated with anti-establis ...

, although some conservative liberal elements remain.

Liberal Manifesto

The principles of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy were outlined in the "Liberal Manifesto" () and latterly the election programmes. The Liberal Manifesto was a general outlook on the direction of the party would like to mirror itself and is an extension of the party's foundational principles. The election programmes are more oriented to practical politics, for example, winning the elections on-the-day and by any means possible. The last Liberal Manifesto of the VVD was published in September 2005. It developed a broad outline around the themes of

democracy Democracy (from , ''dēmos'' 'people' and ''kratos'' 'rule') is a form of government in which political power is vested in the people or the population of a state. Under a minimalist definition of democracy, rulers are elected through competitiv ...

security Security is protection from, or resilience against, potential harm (or other unwanted coercion). Beneficiaries (technically referents) of security may be persons and social groups, objects and institutions, ecosystems, or any other entity or ...

freedom Freedom is the power or right to speak, act, and change as one wants without hindrance or restraint. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving oneself one's own laws". In one definition, something is "free" i ...

and

citizenship Citizenship is a membership and allegiance to a sovereign state. Though citizenship is often conflated with nationality in today's English-speaking world, international law does not usually use the term ''citizenship'' to refer to nationalit ...

, along with a vision of the future of party's internal structure. Below some of the points from the Manifesto are presented:

Democracy

* The Manifesto calls for a directly elected

, whereby voters could express their preference on the ballot. * The idea of (advisory)

referendum A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a Direct democracy, direct vote by the Constituency, electorate (rather than their Representative democracy, representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either bin ...

s is not supported by the party. *

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

s should be directly elected by the people. * Commitment to the four freedoms of the

European Single Market The European single market, also known as the European internal market or the European common market, is the single market comprising mainly the member states of the European Union (EU). With certain exceptions, it also comprises Iceland, ...

Security

* A common policy on defence and security in the European Union is called for.

Freedom

* The principle of non-discrimination should be given more importance than the exercise of religion. * "Social rights" are to be continued. These are not simply rights, but they also create obligations. *

Euthanasia Euthanasia (from : + ) is the practice of intentionally ending life to eliminate pain and suffering. Different countries have different Legality of euthanasia, euthanasia laws. The British House of Lords Select committee (United Kingdom), se ...

is part of a person's right to self-determination. * Commitment to an open economy, with a "regulated

free-market In economics, a free market is an economic system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of government or any ot ...

", including

patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an sufficiency of disclosure, enabling discl ...

s. * Support for the freedom of contract. No right for workers to enter into nationally binding

collective bargaining Collective bargaining is a process of negotiation between employers and a group of employees aimed at agreements to regulate working salaries, working conditions, benefits, and other aspects of workers' compensation and labour rights, rights for ...

agreements.

Citizenship

* Minimise the option of

dual citizenship Multiple citizenship (or multiple nationality) is a person's legal status in which a person is at the same time recognized by more than one sovereign state, country under its nationality law, nationality and citizenship law as a national or cit ...

. * Social security should only be fully open for Dutch nationals. Migrants would have to integrate in order to become citizens.

Migration

The VVD has supported the free movement of goods and people within the

European single market The European single market, also known as the European internal market or the European common market, is the single market comprising mainly the member states of the European Union (EU). With certain exceptions, it also comprises Iceland, ...

, and it has historically opposed limits to labor migration. Since the early 2020s, the party has argued in favor of reducing the reliance of the Dutch economy on unskilled foreign labor.

Policy overview

* Economy and Finance ** Small government **

Laissez-faire ''Laissez-faire'' ( , from , ) is a type of economic system in which transactions between private groups of people are free from any form of economic interventionism (such as subsidies or regulations). As a system of thought, ''laissez-faire'' ...

** Tax reductions **

Market economy A market economy is an economic system in which the decisions regarding investment, production, and distribution to the consumers are guided by the price signals created by the forces of supply and demand. The major characteristic of a mark ...

Balanced budget A balanced budget (particularly that of a government) is a budget in which revenues are equal to expenditures. Thus, neither a budget deficit nor a budget surplus exists (the accounts "balance"). More generally, it is a budget that has no budge ...

* Government and Social Affairs **

Deregulation Deregulation is the process of removing or reducing state regulations, typically in the economic sphere. It is the repeal of governmental regulation of the economy. It became common in advanced industrial economies in the 1970s and 1980s, as a ...

Separation of church and state The separation of church and state is a philosophical and Jurisprudence, jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the State (polity), state. Conceptually, the term refers to ...

** Minimise multiple citizenship **

Emancipation Emancipation generally means to free a person from a previous restraint or legal disability. More broadly, it is also used for efforts to procure Economic, social and cultural rights, economic and social rights, civil and political rights, po ...

Same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same legal Legal sex and gender, sex. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 38 countries, with a total population of 1.5 ...

Cultural Assimilation Cultural assimilation is the process in which a minority group or culture comes to resemble a society's Dominant culture, majority group or fully adopts the values, behaviors, and beliefs of another group. The melting pot model is based on this ...

** Sober care of refugees * Foreign policy and Law **

Pro-Europeanism Pro-Europeanism, sometimes called European Unionism, is a political position that favours European integration and membership of the European Union (EU).Krisztina Arató, Petr Kaniok (editors). ''Euroscepticism and European Integration''. Pol ...

** Internationalism **

Multilateralism In international relations, multilateralism refers to an alliance of multiple countries pursuing a common goal. Multilateralism is based on the principles of inclusivity, equality, and cooperation, and aims to foster a more peaceful, prosperous, an ...

Mandatory sentencing Mandatory sentencing requires that people convicted of certain crimes serve a predefined term of imprisonment, removing the discretion of judges to take issues such as extenuating circumstances and a person's likelihood of rehabilitation into co ...

** Anti-squatting ** Distinction between soft drugs and hard drugs * Health **

Universal health care Universal health care (also called universal health coverage, universal coverage, or universal care) is a health care system in which all residents of a particular country or region are assured access to health care. It is generally organized a ...

** Expansion of the euthanasia policy **

Pro-choice Abortion-rights movements, also self-styled as pro-choice movements, are movements that advocate for legal access to induced abortion services, including elective abortion. They seek to represent and support women who wish to terminate their ...

Election results

House of Representatives

Senate

European Parliament

Representation

Cabinet

Members of the States General

Members of the House of Representatives

Members of the Senate

Representation in EU institutions

In the European Committee of the Regions, VVD sits in the Renew Europe CoR Group, with one full and two alternate members for the 2020-2025 mandate. Martijn van Gruijthuijsen is Coordinator in the ECON Commission.

Electorate

Historically, the VVD electorate consisted mainly of

secular Secularity, also the secular or secularness (from Latin , or or ), is the state of being unrelated or neutral in regards to religion. The origins of secularity can be traced to the Bible itself. The concept was fleshed out through Christian hi ...

middle-class The middle class refers to a class of people in the middle of a social hierarchy, often defined by occupation, income, education, or social status. The term has historically been associated with modernity, capitalism and political debate. Commo ...

and

upper-class Upper class in modern societies is the social class composed of people who hold the highest social status. Usually, these are the wealthiest members of class society, and wield the greatest political power. According to this view, the upper cla ...

voters, with a strong support from entrepreneurs. Under the leadership of Wiegel, the VVD started to expand its appeal to

working class The working class is a subset of employees who are compensated with wage or salary-based contracts, whose exact membership varies from definition to definition. Members of the working class rely primarily upon earnings from wage labour. Most c ...

voters.

Organisation

Leadership

Parliamentary leader A parliamentary leader is a political title or a descriptive term used in various countries to designate the person leading a parliamentary group or caucus in a legislature, legislative body, whether it be a national or sub-national legislature. ...

s in the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

** Anthonie Nicolaas Molenaar (24 January 1948 – 21 November 1958) ** Harm van Riel (23 December 1958 – 3 June 1976) ** Haya van Someren (3 June 1976 – 12 November 1980) ** Guus Zoutendijk (25 November 1980 – 23 June 1987) ** David Luteijn (23 June 1987 – 13 June 1995) ** Frits Korthals Altes (13 June 1995 – 11 March 1997) ** Leendert Ginjaar (11 March 1997 – 14 September 1999) ** Nicoline van den Broek (14 September 1999 – 1 May 2005) ** Uri Rosenthal (1 May 2005 – 14 October 2010) ** Fred de Graaf (14 October 2010 – 22 February 2011) ** Loek Hermans (22 February 2011 – 3 November 2015) ** Helmi Huijbregts-Schiedon (3 November 2015 – 24 November 2015) ** Annemarie Jorritsma (24 November 2015 – 13 June 2023) ** Edith Schippers (13 June 2023 – 31 December 2024) ** (since 1 January 2025) *

s in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

(27 July 1948 – 16 May 1963) ** Roelof Zegering Hadders (16 May 1963 – 2 July 1963) ** Edzo Toxopeus (2 July 1963 – 24 July 1963) ** Molly Geertsema (24 July 1963 – 12 March 1966) ** Edzo Toxopeus (12 March 1966 – 1 October 1969) ** Molly Geertsema (1 October 1969 – 6 July 1971) ** Hans Wiegel (6 July 1971 – 19 December 1977) ** Koos Rietkerk (19 December 1977 – 25 Augustus 1981) ** Hans Wiegel (25 Augustus 1981 – 20 April 1982) ** Ed Nijpels (20 April 1982 – 9 July 1986) ** Joris Voorhoeve (9 July 1986 – 30 April 1990) **

(30 April 1990 – 30 July 1998) ** Hans Dijkstal (30 July 1998 – 23 May 2002) **

(23 May 2002 – 27 May 2003) ** Jozias van Aartsen (27 May 2003 – 8 March 2006) ** Willibrord van Beek (8 March 2006 – 29 June 2006) **

(29 June 2006 – 8 October 2010) ** Stef Blok (8 October 2010 – 20 September 2012) **

(20 September 2012 – 1 November 2012) ** Halbe Zijlstra (1 November 2012 – 23 March 2017) **

(23 March 2017 – 13 October 2017) ** Halbe Zijlstra (13 October 2017 – 25 October 2017) ** Klaas Dijkhoff (25 October 2017 – 31 March 2021) **

(31 March 2021 – 10 January 2022) ** Sophie Hermans (11 January 2022 – 9 December 2023) ** Dilan Yeşilgöz-Zegerius (since 9 December 2023)

Organisational structure

The highest organ of the VVD is the General Assembly, in which all members present have a single vote. It convenes usually twice every year. It appoints the party board and decides on the party programme. The order of the First Chamber, Second Chamber and European Parliament candidates list is decided by a

under all members voting by internet, phone or mail. If contested, the lead candidate of a candidates lists is appointed in a separate referendum in advance. Since 2002 the General Assembly can call for a referendum on other subjects too. About 90 members elected by the members in meetings of the regional branches form the Party Council, which advises the Party Board in the months that the General Assembly does not convene. This is an important forum within the party. The party board handles the daily affairs of the party.

Linked organisations

The independent youth organisation that has a partnership agreement with the VVD is the Youth Organisation Freedom and Democracy (, JOVD), which is a member of the Liberal Youth Movement of the European Union and the International Federation of Liberal and Radical Youth. The education institute of the VVD is the ''Haya van Someren Foundation''. The Telders Foundation is the party's scientific institute and publishes the magazine ''Liberaal Reveil'' every two months. The party published the magazine ''Liber'' bi-monthly.

International organisations

The VVD is a member of the

Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Party The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Party (ALDE Party) is a European political party composed of 76 national-level parties from across Europe, mainly active in the European Union. The ALDE Party is affiliated with Liberal Interna ...

and

Liberal International Liberal International (LI) is a worldwide organization of liberalism, liberal political parties. The political international was founded in Oxford in 1947 and has become the pre-eminent network for liberal and progressive democratic parties aim ...

. The VVD participates in the Netherlands Institute for Multiparty Democracy, a democracy assistance organisation of seven Dutch political parties.

References

External links

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Documentation Centre Dutch Political Parties about VVD
{{DEFAULTSORT:People's Party For Freedom And Democracy 1948 establishments in the Netherlands Conservative liberal parties Conservative parties in the Netherlands Liberal conservative parties Liberal International Libertarian parties in the Netherlands Organisations based in The Hague Pro-European political parties in the Netherlands