Dutch far-right leader Wilders says voters should decide on his future in government

VOLENDAM, Netherlands (Reuters) -Dutch far-right politician Geert Wilders urged other party leaders on Saturday to reconsider their refusal to work with him after an election on October 29 that will determine the Netherlands' next coalition government.

Wilders, who campaigns on a promise to stop all asylum migration to the Netherlands, won the last election in 2023 and leads in opinion polls before next week's election.

But his chances of getting into government, or becoming prime minister, look small, as leaders of all other main parties have ruled out joining a government coalition with him.

OPINION POLL LEAD

"The voter is in charge, not the other parties," Wilders told Reuters after a campaign event in Volendam, a traditional Wilders stronghold just north of Amsterdam.

Formation of the government would then have to depend on the outcome, he said.

"I hope we will win, it looks good, but you never know," he said,

Christian Democrat leader Henri Bontenbal said in an interview published on Saturday that Wilders' voters would be "left in the cold, as he will likely not govern".

"Any coalition with a majority in the Lower House is democratic," he told Dutch daily De Telegraaf. "Winning the election is no guarantee you get to join government or to bring the prime minister."

In Volendam, Wilders, leader of the Freedom Party (PVV), underlined the importance of his supporters taking part in the election, and not being demoralised by his rivals.

"If the PVV wins the election and they let you down by not even talking to us, that would be the death of democracy in the Netherlands," he said at the event in Volendam.

An opinion poll published by research company Ipsos on Saturday put the PVV ahead but by a smaller margin than previously.

The poll projected the PVV would take 26 seats in the 150-seat Lower House, and the left-wing Green/Labour combination, centrist D66 and the Christian Democrats winning between 20 and 23 seats.

The poll had an error margin of 2 seats on both sides.

(Reporting by Bart Meijer and Zoran Mikletic, Editing by Timothy Heritage)