Support for Dutch coalition holds below 40%; Nearly 70% expect Cabinet to collapse
After its first few months in office, confidence in the Schoolf I Cabinet is relatively stable at 39 percent, about the same as it was in June. At the same time, 69 percent of voters expect the Cabinet to collapse. Even people who voted for the coalition parties are pessimistic - 54 percent expect the Cabinet won’t survive its full term, according to an EenVandaag survey of over 22,000 members of its Opinion Panel.
Despite the pessimism, 42 percent of voters hope the Cabinet will serve a full term, pointing out that the previous two Cabinets both collapsed. “In these times, it is more important than ever that the country is governed and that society can function,” a ChristenUnie voter said. “Moreover, new elections cost a lot of money and don’t solve anything.”
Today, the Cabinet will present its government agreement - the coalition agreement between the PVV, VVD, NSC, and BBB worked out in more detail. But in the months since the coalition agreement was presented in June, coalition voters have tempered their expectations.
71 percent of coalition voters think that the Cabinet knows what is going on in the country. But only 48 percent think it is capable of tackling the problems decisively. They worry that EU legislation and “left-wing troublemakers” in the opposition will block many of the government’s plans. They also expect that it will take time to repair the “Rutte mess.”
Coalition voters also have concerns about the Cabinet itself. They feel some Cabinet members are too inexperienced. “They know to a certain extent what is going on but have no idea how to solve or improve it.” They also worry about “quarreling coalition partners” and “emotional outbursts” in recent months. And some think the Cabinet is at the mercy of “the whims of the party leaders” who interfere too much. “There is no cooperation, and Wilders is sawing at Schoof’s chair legs with his behavior on X,” one respondent said.
