GroenLinks–PvdA | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Abbreviation | GL/PvdA |
| Leader in theHouse of Representatives[1] | Jesse Klaver |
| Leader in theSenate | Paul Rosenmöller |
| Founded | 2023 |
| Ideology | Social democracy[2] Green politics[2] Progressivism[2] |
| Political position | Centre-left[7] toleft-wing[10] |
| Regional affiliation | SGD/SVD[11] |
| Member parties | |
| Colours | Green Red |
| House of Representatives | 20 / 150 |
| Senate | 14 / 75 |
| European Parliament | 8 / 31 |
| Provincial councils[a] | 15 / 548 |
| Municipal Councils[b] | 149 / 7,991 |
| Benelux Parliament | 4 / 21 |
| Website | |
| groenlinkspvda.nl | |
GroenLinks–PvdA (Dutch:[ɣrunˈlɪŋksˌpeːveːdeːˈjaː]; alternativelyPvdA–GroenLinks, orGreenLeft–Labour in English), is an alliance betweenGroenLinks (GL;GreenLeft) and theLabour Party (PvdA) in the Netherlands.
Thepolitical alliance was founded at the national level by party leadersLilianne Ploumen andJesse Klaver during the2021–2022 Dutch cabinet formation, whereas local alliances between the two parties had already been formed in prior years. The two parties formed a jointparliamentary group in theProvincial Council of Zeeland in 29 March 2023, then formed a joint group in theSenate following the2023 Dutch Senate election, and formed a joint group in theHouse of Representatives on 27 October 2023.[12]
Following the collapse of thefourth Rutte cabinet in July 2023, the leaders of PvdA (Attje Kuiken) and GL (Jesse Klaver) announced their intention to contest the2023 Dutch general election as an alliance.[13][14] Members of both PvdA and GroenLinks voted in favour of the proposal, and confirmedFrans Timmermans aslead candidate in August.[15]
Despite their joint list in the2024 European Parliament election, GroenLinks members joined theGreens/EFA group, while PvdA members joined theS&D group. Through internal referendums in both PvdA and GL in June 2025, members from both parties voted in favour of a full merger into a new political party to be formed in 2026, along with an alliance for the2025 Dutch general election.[16]
Prior to the formation of a national alliance, the Labour Party (PvdA) and GroenLinks (GL) had already formed local alliances in some municipalities; in the2022 municipal elections, the two parties participated with a joint list in 50 local municipalities.[17] In addition, they had formedelectoral alliances (Dutch:lijstverbindingen) in multiple national elections, such as the2009 European Parliament election and the2010 general election.[18]
The idea of a possible merger of centre-left parties in the Netherlands, including the PvdA and GL, is not a new idea. As early as 2004,Job Cohen, thenmayor of Amsterdam and later PvdA national leader, called for a merger of the PvdA, GL andSocialist Party (SP), suggesting "Progressive People's Party" as possible name.[19] That name refers to an evenearlier proposal with the same name that was discussed in the 1970s of the PvdA,Democrats 66 (D66) and thePolitical Party of Radicals (PPR), one of GL's forerunners, to merge into a single party. This, however, never materialised.
Following the heavy defeat of the PvdA in the2017 general election, in which the party went from 25 per cent to less than six per cent of the vote, discussions about a possible merger began to rise again. With this electoral demise, the left-of-centre political landscape in the Netherlands - including D66, GL, SP, theParty for the Animals (PvdD),Christian Union (CU),Volt Netherlands,DENK andBIJ1 - fragmented. In both the 2017 and 2021 general elections, there was no left-leaning party big enough to be the main contender to Prime MinisterMark Rutte'sPeople's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) from the left. Many left-leaning voters in the Netherlands have a habit of voting tactically for the largest left-leaning force in an attempt to prevent a right-leaning party from becoming the largest party.[20] Examples of this are the2012 and2003 general elections when voters from other left-leaning parties flocked to the Labour Party.[citation needed]
When the PvdA and GL received a disappointing election result in the 2021 general election (5.7 per cent and 5.0 per cent respectively), calls for a merger increased. In the first week after the elections, members from both parties founded the movement Red-Green (Dutch:Rood-Groen) led byFrank van de Wolde calling for more cooperation between the two parties and an eventual merger. This movement has tabled motions in multiple party member meetings of both the PvdA and GL that pushed the parties towards a deeper cooperation.
During the2021–2022 cabinet formation, Lilianne Ploumen (PvdA) and Jesse Klaver (GL) indicated that they only wanted to join a coalition government if the other party also joined, thereby forming an alliance in the negotiations.[21] In August 2021, PvdA members passed multiple motions tabled by the Red-Green movement that forced the party to not enter government without GL and further steps to strengthen the cooperation.[22]People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) leaderMark Rutte strongly opposed forming a coalition with both the PvdA and GL, and referred to the alliance as a 'left-wing cloud' (Dutch:linkse wolk).[23] Following their exclusion from thefourth Rutte cabinet, the Labour Party and GroenLinks decided to intensify co-operation asopposition parties.[24]
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The PvdA and GL participated in the2023 provincial elections separately, but formed a joint list inZeeland.[25] After the2023 Senate election, in which the members of the Senate were elected by the members of theprovincial councils andelectoral colleges, the two parties formed a joint group in the senate.[26] With fourteen seats, the PvdA–GroenLinks group became the second-largest senate group behind theFarmer–Citizen Movement.[27]
Following the collapse of thefourth Rutte cabinet on 7 July 2023, PvdA leader Attje Kuiken and GroenLinks leader Jesse Klaver announced their intention to contest the2023 Dutch general election, to be held on 22 November, with a jointelectoral list andlead candidate. From 10 to 17 July 2023, both parties held an internal referendum on this proposal.[13][14] Approximately 88% of PvdA members and 92% of GL members voted in favour of participating in the election with a joint GL/PvdA list.[15]
Three days later, formerforeign ministerFrans Timmermans (PvdA) declared his intention to become lead candidate for the alliance.[28] His candidacy was met with widespread approval from both parties.[29] On 22 August 2023, during a joint GroenLinks–PvdA party meeting, Timmermans was confirmed as lead candidate with 92 percent of the vote.[30] He resigned from his posts at theEuropean Commission on the same day.[31]
PvdA–GL finished the election with 25 seats and 15.75% of the vote, finishing second to the right-wingParty for Freedom (PVV) but ahead of the governingPeople's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD). The coalition hoped to form a government withNew Social Contract and other, smaller parties like theParty for the Animals (PvdD). Timmermans ruled out forming a government with PVV and VVD, and admitted that it was "extremely unlikely" that PvdA-GL would be in cabinet.[32] GL–PvdA ended up as opposition to theSchoof cabinet.
After the fall of the Schoof cabinet, both GL and PvdA held an internal referendum about another joint list for the2025 Dutch general election between 5 and 12 June 2025.[33] On 12 June 2025, a joint list was confirmed, with 95.0% of the GL voters and 93.7% of the PvdA voters voting in favour.[34] In the election, GL–PvdA obtained 20 seats, losing 5 compared to the 2023 election. After theexit poll was announced, Timmermans announced his resignation as leader of the alliance, and former GroenLinks leaderJesse Klaver was subsequently chosen by the parliamentary group as its chair.[35][36]
There has been an ongoing discussion about a possible merger of the two parties into a single party. Proponents – including formerLabour Party leadersJob Cohen andDiederik Samsom and Labour Party prominent and former health ministerHedy d'Ancona, and GroenLinks prominentsBram van Ojik,Andrée van Es andBas de Gaay Fortman – have shown support for a merger by becoming a member of each other's party.[37] They have also founded the activist group 'RedGreen' (Dutch:RoodGroen) to advocate for the creation of a "strong, leftist movement" for "social, green and righteous politics".[37][38] Opponents, on the other hand, have expressed concern for the "ideological dilution" and possible loss of electorate as a consequence of the parties' merger.[39]
On 13 March 2025, it was announced that members of the parties would be able to vote for a decision in principle about founding a new left and green party on 21 June 2025.[40] The referendum was brought forward to between 5 and 12 June 2025 after the fall of theSchoof cabinet.[33] On 12 June 2025, it was announced that GL and PvdA would merge into a new party in 2026, with 89.1% of GL voters and 88.0% of PvdA voters voting in favour.[34]
GL-PvdA opposesnuclear power, despite party leaderFrans Timmermans giving it a green label whilstEuropean Commissioner for Climate Action.[41]
GL-PvdA advocates in favour of a totalweapons embargo against Israel, including components for theIron Dome defence system, which protects civilians against air attacks, citing Israeli attacks on Iran.[42][43]
GL-PvdA seeks a reduction in the number ofasylum seekers coming to the Netherlands.[44]
At the last party conference prior to the2023 Dutch general election, 52% of members voted for abolition of theDutch monarchy. Timmermans did not give it priority.[45]
| Election | Lead candidate | List | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | Government |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Frans Timmermans | List | 1,643,073 | 15.75 | 25 / 150 |  8[c] | Opposition |
| 2025 | List | 1,352,163 | 12.79 | 20 / 150 |  5 | TBA |
| Election | List | Votes | % | Seats | +/– | EP Group |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | List | 1,314,428 | 21.09 | 8 / 31 | 1[d] | Greens-EFA /S&D |
| Election | Province | Votes | % | Seats | +/− |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Zeeland | 24,514 | 13.4 | 6 / 39 | New |
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The left-wing GroenLinks/PvdA alliance is on 23, down one on last week's poll.