Dutch anti-EU far-right populist Geert Wilders, who has vowed to halt all immigration to the Netherlands, was set for a major victory in parliamentary elections on Wednesday, an exit poll showed.
Beating all predictions, the exit poll put Wilders' Freedom Party (PVV) at 35 out of 150 seats, 10 seats ahead of the closest rival, former EU Commissioner Frans Timmermans' Labour/Green Left combination. That margin was far greater than expected and appeared to be too great for the outcome to change.
Exit polls are generally reliable with a margin of error of roughly two seats.
At a cafe in The Hague, Wilders fans erupted in cheers, hugged and threw their arms in the air.
In a victory speech, Wilders vowed to bring an end to a "tsunami of asylum and immigration."
(Reuters)