Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte sounded the alarm over the prospect of Geert Wilders placing first in this month's election, warning of the economic chaos that would ensue if the anti-euro Freedom Party leader got a hold on power. Rutte, speaking in an interview on the sidelines of a campaign event in Amsterdam on Thursday, said the Netherlands has the chance on March 15 to draw a line in the sand over the spread of populism through western democracies. The Dutch can choose to send a signal to the world that it's possible to "stop that trend," said Rutte. But if Wilders takes the most votes, "internationally it would mean that people say the next domino has fallen, no matter who eventually governs," Rutte said. "After Brexit, the U.S, also the Netherlands -- then France, Germany and Italy will follow. If you look at the chaos that arose in the U.S. and the U.K., then it's essential we avoid that." With the Netherlands holding the first of three big elections in Europe this year, Rutte is casting his Liberals as the best chance of forming a bulwark against the rise of nationalist movements such as Marine Le Pen's National Front in France and the Alternative for Germany. Falling Polls While the anti-Islam, anti-European Union Freedom Party has led the Liberals for much of the campaign, recent polls suggest Wilders's party may be fading. The latest Ipsos weekly poll published late on Thursday showed the Freedom Party with 24 seats in the 150-seat lower house of parliament, down two on the week, compared with 28 seats for the Liberals. The Dutch election illustrates the splintering of politics as voters abandon the traditional mainstream in favor of single issue parties or radical voices that address specific concerns. With 28 parties contesting the election and as many as 14 of them forecast to enter the parliament, forces on all sides are in with a chance of sharing power. "People don't want to vote for an old, classic party anymore -- and rightly so," Jesse Klaver, leader of the Greens, said in an interview with Het Financieele Dagblad newspaper published Friday. "The Greens are becoming a broad people's party," and with an average of 16 seats in recent surveys, "we've never been as high in the polls as now." Since the mainstream Dutch parties have rejected working with Wilders, who was convicted last year of making discriminatory comments toward immigrants, it's still unlikely the Freedom Party will become part of a governing coalition after the election.
