The turnout in municipal elections in our province has fallen sharply compared to four years ago. Local parties made the biggest gains, the number of votes for local parties rose by almost 8 percent.
Just under 47 percent of those entitled to vote went to the polling station, compared to more than 53 percent four years ago. Turnout appears to be historically low.
Local and PvdA big winners
The local parties are the big winners in North Holland, this trend is also reflected nationally. The number of votes for the local parties rose by almost 8 percent. Spread across Noord-Holland, these parties had 310 seats, this election has increased to 393 seats.
Also the PvdA grew considerably in our province compared to the previous municipal elections, namely by 2 percent. The party did very well, especially in Amsterdam, where it rose by four seats.
New party wins in Bergen
Won in Bergen the new party Ons Dorp, with nearly 23 percent of the vote. According to party leader Jan Houtenbos, who resigned as alderman in the municipality in 2019, the success is due to the familiar faces on the party’s list.
Book in Beverwijk Together Local of faction leader Ali Bal a big win. The party goes from two to eight seats in the city council. All parties that lose a seat in Heemskerk will lose it to Heemskerk Lokaal.
In many places, the largest local parties could count on loyal voters. In Alkmaar, the Independent Party Alkmaar the largest party with five seats. Harrie van der Laan Party for the Elderly and Safety (POV) saw his party become the largest in both the municipality of Zaanstad and Wormerland.
Relatively high turnout in Edam-Volendam
In some municipalities the turnout was significantly higher than the average in the province. In Bloemendaal, Texel and Waterland, among others, the turnout was over 65 percent. The largest risers in turnout are the municipalities of Haarlemmermeer and Edam-Volendam, where more than 11 percent more people voted. The previous elections that took place there were about municipal redivisions.
The turnout is lowest in Beverwijk, less than 44 percent of the beneficiaries cast their vote.
Difference parliamentary elections
The turnout of municipal elections is consistently lower than the elections to the House of Representatives, with an average difference of 30 percent. According to the CBS a large number of parties leads to a lower turnout of voters. A larger number of voting locations in a neighborhood is expected to have a positive influence on turnout.
A lower turnout for municipal elections compared to elections to the House of Representatives is also explained by the percentage of low incomes in a neighbourhood. The larger the group, the greater the difference in attendance.
In addition, the CBS concludes that redivision elections after a merger of municipalities, a greater population density in a municipality and an extra party on the electoral list result in a greater difference in turnout between the national and municipal elections.