For Otto, the next step is clear: 50PLUS Assen will not continue as 50PLUS Assen. It is not yet clear what the alternative will be, he says, but ‘it will no longer be 50PLUS anyway’.
A step that hurts him, says Otto. “50PLUS was a party that always stood up for the elderly, with a large electorate. Standing up for the old age is overshadowed by job hunting and people who put themselves in the foreground. I can no longer agree with that.”
At the end of October, the provincial departmental councils of Groningen, Friesland and Drenthe will consult with each other about how to proceed with the party and whether they will work together or not. Kor de Vries, secretary of the Groningen chapter of 50PLUS, confirms this. He also says that Groningen ‘does not completely’ agree with Van Hooft as party leader.
“The members have spoken, we should accept that,” De Vries responds. The question is whether that will happen, just like what this result means for 50PLUS Groningen. “We haven’t had any discussions about that yet,” says De Vries. The local factions can also join the consultation between the departmental boards, according to Otto.
A decision will be made about an alternative to 50PLUS Assen after the elections, says Otto. “What do we do with the people who have always voted for 50PLUS in the past? Can we take them with us and how can we support them? Maybe the supporters would like to vote for Gerard, we have to answer those kinds of questions first.”