Local parties came, saw and conquered: ‘village taken back’

Municipal interests Uithoorn won three seats in this election. “We assumed seven seats, but it has become eight,” says party leader Herman Bezuijen when NH Nieuws calls him. The party now has five seats in the Uithoorn council, so there was no lack of self-confidence even before the elections.

Piece of reward

“I think it is a combination of factors”, Bezuijen is looking for an explanation for the flow in which local parties find themselves. In the case of his party, he says it is ‘some reward for what we have accomplished in recent years’. “We have been in the coalition for eight years.”

The fact that the political menu was less extensive during these elections in Uithoorn has, according to the party leader, generated votes anyway. “Two local parties have disappeared, we have gone from eight to six parties.”

He also suspects that ‘sentiment about local parties’ has also generated votes, referring to the distrust of The Hague’s politics.

‘Aalsmeerders take village back’

For the number two on the list of Absolutely Aalsmeer, Chantal van Hilst-Dekker, the election results mean that ‘Aalsmeerders take their village back’. “You feel that it is really for Aalsmeer. The inhabitants have spoken.” For years there was a fear that the village character of Aalsmeer would be lost due to the collaboration with the urban Amstelveen.

For Absolute Aalsmeer it is still a bit exciting whether she will get two or three more seats. That makes the total six or seven. That one seat makes a difference, because the CDA, which for years held sway in Aalsmeer, also has six. The CDA had to give up two seats this year.

Aalsmeer regains some of its independence in a new partnership agreement. Council members and civil servants, for example, partly move back to the town hall in Aalsmeer.

“I think that the residents really want their city council close by. The officials in their own city hall. If you want to arrange something, you don’t want to have to go to Amstelveen,” says van Hilst-Dekker. “I think you should keep the collaboration where it works well, but I think it’s good that we get some self-direction again.”

Van Hilst-Dekker tries to explain the local success: “Aalsmeerders are proud of their village. You really recognize the village in that. People do it for their own living environment and children. They are concerned about their future and then it is wise to to vote for a local party.”

Absolutely Aalsmeer has made the difference, according to Van Hilst-Dekker, by going to residents and talking to them. “We handed out cards saying: ‘What keeps you awake?’ We really want to do it for the residents,” she says.

With whom?

Thanks to the gain of Absolute Aalsmeer and the loss of CDA (-2) and VVD (-1), the party probably needs the VVD (5 seats) or CDA (6 seats) to gain a majority in the council. In Uithoorn, DUS!, the local collaboration between D66 and GroenLinks, has enough for Municipal Interests, which gained two more seats yesterday and now has six.

village center

It is still too early to anticipate what a possible collaboration with DUS! means for Uithoorn, the village character of the municipality and other hot topics, emphasizes Bezuijen. Although his party does not mention maintaining a ‘village character’ in its election manifesto, that does not mean that they do not pay attention to it.

“We are talking strongly about quality of life,” said the party leader. “Uithoorn is known for its large amount of greenery, but it also needs to be maintained.” That village character is indeed a starting point in the plan Dorpshart aan de Amstel, which is part of the Masterplan Dorpscentrum.

Giving the center a friendlier, greener and more village-like face, that is what Municipal Interests still support. “And the election results confirm that the voter apparently likes it.”