Confidence in Dutch politics is at its lowest since 2012, the year the measurements started. This was evident from new figures from the Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS) on Tuesday.
Last year, almost 25 percent of those over fifteen had ‘a great deal’ or ‘fairly a lot’ of confidence in the House of Representatives, while in 2012 this was still more than 36 percent. Trust in politicians remained stuck at more than 21 percent last year. This has only been measured since 2016, when it was over 27 percent.
Trust in politics is lowest in the Northeast and among people between the ages of 65 and 75
Confidence peaked during the corona crisis, after which it collapsed again in 2022. “That is a phenomenon that you see in most countries,” says Tanja Traag, chief sociologist at CBS. “People tend to trust politicians more in times of crisis, because they feel like they have the solution.”
The fact that it then collapses again is normal, according to Traag. This was also visible after the credit crisis of 2008. “But we do see that confidence continues to decline.” In 2024, more than 31 and more than 25 percent respectively still had ‘a great deal’ or ‘quite a lot’ of confidence in the House of Representatives and politicians. “That does not necessarily mean that democracy is crumbling; it is only worrying if it is a long-term trend. But this is a signal to politicians.”
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More visible
It is striking that confidence in the European Union, civil servants and the municipal council has actually increased compared to 2022. The increase was largest for the last two. In 2022, more than 42 percent had ‘a great deal’ or ‘quite a lot’ of confidence in civil servants. Now it is more than 47 percent. For the municipal council this concerns almost 51 percent and more than 54 percent respectively.
Slow can’t quite explain that. “But what could have something to do with it is that people have the feeling that civil servants and the municipal council are closer to them than the House of Representatives. Moreover, national politicians are much more visible and there is much more attention to what is not going well nationally than locally.”
Confidence in politics is lowest in the northeast of the country and among people between the ages of 65 and 75. 15 to 25 year olds have the most confidence in political institutions. According to Traag, this is not because older people grew up in a different time and have very different experiences: it is because they have more (negative) experiences than younger people, as a result of which their confidence has slowly decreased. Young people still have a relatively “mild” view of politics.
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