2021 Parliamentary Election: First polling stations open at 7:30 a.m.

From today, Netherlands residents can go to the polls to vote in the parliamentary election. Election day is actually on Wednesday, but some polling stations will open today and tomorrow due to the coronavirus. The first polling stations are opening at 7:30 a.m.

The intention is that people who belong to the risk groups and are therefore extra vulnerable to the coronavirus, go to the ballot boxes on Monday at Tuesday. A total of around 1,600 polling stations will be open on these two days, according to RTL Nieuws.

In principle, people who are not extra vulnerable to the coronavirus can also vote on Monday and Tuesday. The Electoral Council said that they would not be turned away, but stressed that this possibility was created to allow vulnerable groups to vote safely. Minister Kasja Ollongren of Home Affairs also previously called on Netherlands residents to wait for Wednesday if they're not in a risk group.

On Wednesday, March 17, a total of some 9,200 polling stations will be open for the rest of the Netherlands to cast their vote.

Voters over the age of 70 were given the option of voting by mail, as the coronavirus is most dangerous to the elderly. That includes over 2.4 million Netherlands residents.