The PvdA has a long tradition of making compromises, unlike GroenLinks. It will soon be Mark Rutte and Wopke Hoekstra who will test the real tension of left-wing cooperation.
Put two Dutch people together and you have a political party in the making. Put three together and the first split threatens. The members of PvdA and GroenLinks broke with that old Dutch law on Saturday, at least for a while. For the first time since the establishment of the ChristenUnie, more than two decades ago, two parties decided to seriously join forces: next May, PvdA and GroenLinks will unite their factions in the Senate in the hope of forming a power bloc that will can make significant changes to government policy.
The opposing camp, fearing the squandering of its own principles, has been noisy in recent weeks, but appears to be no larger than about 20 percent of the members in both parties. The vast majority dare, knowing that there are of course differences between PvdA and GroenLinks, but also that they are no bigger than the differences of opinion that there always were in a large party like the PvdA from the past. A party does not have to agree on everything, as long as the fundamentals are shared.
In recent weeks, the nuance has sometimes disappeared in the debate: a merger of a faction in the Senate is far from being a merger of a party. Certainly not because the boards of both parties want to organize it in such a way that both senate factions can continue separately if it turns out not to work. In that regard, the first test will come during the Senate elections next year. What if the parties together won fewer seats than they did individually in 2019?
The second test will no doubt come as government responsibility comes into view. Or if such a well-known ‘opposition deal’ has to be concluded soon, which VVD and CDA are always looking for in their search for majorities in the Senate. The PvdA of Drees, Den Uyl and Kok has a long tradition of making compromises ‘in the interests of the country’ and defending them against all odds, even if their own supporters revolt. GroenLinks has less than a minute of experience in this nationally, partly because the party tends to adopt a more principled position in negotiations.
It will therefore not be Jesse Klaver and Attje Kuiken who will really test the tension of the left-wing collaboration, but Mark Rutte and Wopke Hoekstra.
The position of the newspaper is expressed in the Volkskrant Commentaar. It is created after a discussion between the commentators and the editor-in-chief.