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Marine Le Pen has heralded the electoral success of Geert Wilders in the Netherlands as \u201chope for change\u201d, in what is a nightmarish blow to Emmanuel Macron.<\/p>\n
The National Rally leader posted on X following the landmark result, which saw Wilders\u2019 Freedom Party win 37 seats.<\/p>\n
Wilders is staunchly Eurosceptic and critical of Islam, and thus shares an ideological throughline with Le Pen.<\/p>\n
The French politician said that the 60-year-old\u2019s performance at the polls was down to Dutch voters\u2019 \u201cattachment to the defence of national identities\u201d.<\/p>\n
She added that \u201cthere are people who refuse to see the national torch extinguished\u201d and \u201cthat the hope for change remains alive in Europe”.<\/p>\n
READ MORE <\/strong> Geert Wilders’ Dutch election victory is a humbling moment for Brussels[COMMENT] <\/strong><\/p>\n The Freedom Party gained 20 seats on their 2021 performance of 17 seats in the 150-seater parliament. Mr Wilders did particularly well in rural and coastal regions, taking 23.5 per cent of the national vote.<\/p>\n His sweeping win, the latest of a slew of victories for the European Right, comes as Le Pen\u2019s National Rally leads Emmanuel Macron\u2019s En Marche by nine points.<\/p>\n And an OpinionWay EU Election poll puts National Rally on 28 per cent, five points up on its previous return.<\/p>\n With respect to the 2027 French Presidential Election, an Odoxa survey suggested Le Pen would defeat Macron by 54 per cent to 46 per cent.<\/p>\n Don’t miss… <\/strong> Although still a long way off, President Macron is unquestionably under siege from a bullish Right and Geert Wilders\u2019 win in the Netherlands nearby will do little to ease the sense that Europe is turning its back on metropolitan liberalism.<\/p>\n Mr Wilders, despite being the leader of the largest party, is not guaranteed to be the Prime Minister.<\/p>\n Today he will enter negotiations with opposition parties, such as outgoing PM Mark Rutte\u2019s VVD.<\/p>\n Despite the uncertainty surrounding who will take charge, the Dutch political veteran was confident: \u201cThe PVV can no longer be ignored. We will govern.\u201d<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/cdn.images.express.co.uk\/img\/dynamic\/78\/590x\/secondary\/5082860.jpg?r=1700819835282\")
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