One of the councilors who can no longer be found in the Stopera from this week is 85-year-old Wil van Soest. Her party, the Party of the Elderly, received too few votes for a seat in the Amsterdam city council.
The final election results were announced this morning in the Stopera. One of those present was Van Soest. “It’s a shame you’re just left out, but yes, it’s the reality. If people don’t vote for you, you don’t deserve it.”
Mayor Halsema still spoke to Van Soest. “Sometimes the council meetings will be shorter,” said Halsema. “But Mrs. Van Soest was able to make herself heard and often managed to bring up a point that had been overlooked by others and in which, we all had to conclude, she was right.”
Van Soest hopes to come back in four years’ time at the next municipal elections. “My health is good, everything works fine, so why not. You never know. The elderly are still doing well, just look at Louis van Gaal and the president of America. And so all those elderly are taken out of the stable again to save the day. So I’m not giving up just yet.”