Dutch turn the page as Jetten rises up the political ladder

In more than one way, Rob Jetten, the head of the liberal D66 party who might become the next Dutch prime minister, offers a stark contrast to Geert Wilders, the divisive anti-migrant lawmaker who heads the far-right Freedom Party.

- Bloomberg

Rob Jetten

The 38-year-old former minister for climate and energy could become the country's youngest ever premier if he succeeds in hammering out a complex coalition deal to form the next government.

His pro-Europe D66 party emerged as one of the winners in Wednesday's federal election, which was triggered by Wilders abruptly leaving the previous governing alliance after only 11 months over a dispute about immigration.

"One thing is sure: millions of Dutch people have turned the page, said goodbye to a politics of negativism and hate," Jetten said late Wednesday at the party's election night event in the university town of Leiden near the Hague. It was a thinly veiled reference to Wilders' heated and often inflammatory rhetoric that rattled Dutch politics over the past years.

Jetten is staunchly pro-European Union, he supports measures to boost sustainability and clean energy and backs certain kinds of migration. In effect, he's a clear foil for the eurosceptic Wilders, who has called for banning Muslim immigration, mosques and the Koran.

And Europe is watching intently to see the outcome of the election, which could have a direct impact on important policy debates happening on the continent.