Election results: DWARS Utrecht responds

Dear DWARSe Utrechters,

The Provincial Council elections have been almost a month now. Time to look back, and like national politics, give a reaction to the results.

The big elephant in the room is that the BBB has become the biggest in all provinces, even progressive Utrecht. What should we do with that? Should we now suddenly move towards the BBB on nitrogen policy? To BBB, or not to BBB?

Minister Van der Wal, the bravest of the bunch in The Hague, coolly said: ‘We have been putting this file off for decades, delaying it is not possible, not even legally. It's a sour conclusion, but we don't have that luxury.’ This, of course, is a truism. And the majority of voters support it too. In Utrecht province, an overwhelming majority, about 70%, voted in favour of the government's nitrogen policy. Among young people, for whom our politics should stand up more, that percentage is even higher. So it is an illusion to think that people voted en masse against nitrogen policy. On the contrary, people voted in favour of protecting nature. Not abiding by European rules, letting nature wither and a halt in housing construction is the very last thing our beautiful province needs. DWARS Utrecht therefore calls on GroenLinks Utrecht to be in a coalition that takes nitrogen policy seriously. After all, we do not have to wait for the cabinet with policy.

If we have to be in a coalition with the VVD and the CDA, they will no doubt find it uncomfortable. For them, I have a message. You have chosen to keep 2030 as the date in the coalition agreement, so your voters have chosen that too. Maybe it's because we as DWARS Utrecht have not been politically active for so long and are therefore so naive and idealistic, but we always thought that in politics you represent the people who voted for you, and not those who did not. So have the guts to implement your policies. And GroenLinks may help them a little in doing so.

Finally, let me say that we can be super proud of ourselves and GroenLinks. It was hard to imagine two years ago that we would be standing here, after the beating, it is fair to say, in the 2021 parliamentary elections. GroenLinks had then almost halved in seats and had sadly left a large part of our electorate behind. But in this campaign, GroenLinks Utrecht again offered a broader story, with a balance and coherence between social, green and inclusive, in which many people felt at home. This allowed us to largely maintain our historic gains of 4 years ago, with two DWARSers also elected, both with preferential votes. Indeed, due to their fantastic campaign, the amazing Julia Matser and Imraan el Hamdaoui were directly elected with preferential votes. So: young people in politics? It's just possible!

On behalf of the board of DWARS Utrecht,

Gijs Broere, chairman DWARS Utrecht

Dear DWARSe Utrechters,

The elections for the Provincial States took place almost a month ago. It's time to reflect and, like the national politics, respond to the results.

The elephant in the room is that the BBB (Farmers’ Party) has become the largest party in all provinces, even in the progressive Utrecht. What should we do about it? Should we suddenly move towards the BBB on nitrogen policy? To BBB or not to BBB?

Minister Van der Wal, the bravest of the Hague group, said coolly, “We have postponed this issue for decades, we cannot postpone it any longer, not even legally. It is a bitter conclusion, but we don't have the luxury of postponing it.” This is obviously a truism. And the majority of the voters also support this. In the province of Utrecht, an overwhelming majority, about 70%, voted for the government's nitrogen policy. Among young people, who our politics should represent more, this percentage is even higher. It is therefore an illusion to think that people have voted massively against nitrogen policy. People have voted for protecting nature. Not adhering to European regulations, letting nature wither, and stagnation in housing construction is the last thing our beautiful province needs. Therefore, DWARS Utrecht calls on GroenLinks Utrecht to be part of a coalition that takes nitrogen policy seriously. We do not have to wait for the government to implement the policy.

If we have to form a coalition with the VVD (People's Party for Freedom and Democracy) and the CDA (Christian Democratic Appeal), they will undoubtedly find it uncomfortable. For them, I have a message. You have chosen to keep the year 2030 as the target in the coalition agreement, and that's what your voters have chosen too. Perhaps because DWARS Utrecht is not yet politically active for a long time and thus naive and idealistic, we always thought that in politics, you represent the people who did vote for you, not those who didn't. Have the courage to implement your policies, and let GroenLinks help you with that.

Finally, let me say that we can be super proud of ourselves and GroenLinks. Two years ago, it was challenging to imagine that we would be here today after the punishment, you could say, in the 2021 general election. GroenLinks was almost halved in seats and unfortunately left a large part of our electorate behind. But in this campaign, GroenLinks Utrecht offered a broader story, with a balance and coherence between social, green, and inclusive, in which many people felt at home. As a result, we were able to maintain most of our historic victory from four years ago, with two DWARSers elected, both with preferential votes. Thanks to their fantastic campaign, the great Julia Matser and Imraan el Hamdaoui were directly elected with preferential votes. So: young people in politics? It's possible!

On behalf of the board of DWARS Utrecht,

Gijs Broere, Chairman DWARS Utrecht