Dutch general election live: Netherlands votes in knife-edge poll

More pictures from election day in the Netherlands.

Turnout by 7:45pm stood at 66%, according to Ipsos, NOS reported.

This is lower than turnout at the same time during the 2017 election.

At the Anne Frank House museum in Amsterdam, where a young Anne Frank hid from a Nazi occupation, the doors were open for the first time as a polling station – and after voting, people could see the museum and were given a small, red pencil inscribed with a quote from Anne Frank: “How wonderful it is that no one has to wait a minute to change the world!”

Ronald Leopold, Executive Director of the Anne Frank House said that the museum had decided to welcome Amsterdammers as a recognition of the importance of democratic values. “The Anne Frank House calls attention to the vital importance of freedom, equal rights and democracy,” he said in a statement.

He added:

Anne Frank was born in a democratic country, but four years later her homeland had become a dictatorship. It’s important to realise that democracy is fragile and that we must cherish our democratic values. The right to vote is the foundation of our democratic rule of law.

Anne, 28, from Amsterdam, said:

I was on my way to the Westerkerk church, where I was going to vote and I thought this was an unusual location. It’s an extraordinary historical place of oppression and exclusion, to exercise your democratic right to vote. I knew which party to vote for, the person not so much. I voted for a woman from the GreenLeft/Labour. It’s not a strategic vote but I hope the PVV won’t win – I really hope it.

Mirjam Stoker, 52, from Amsterdam, went to the museum after voting for GreenLeft/Labour, having previously often voted Labour.

“Anne Frank couldn’t vote and we have the freedom to do it – so it seemed like a beautiful thing to do. You get a pencil you can keep, which is lovely.

I voted a bit strategically, and I hope that it is more left than right in the way it goes. I’m a bit scared of the PVV: government needs to stay a bit in the middle and I hope people keep talking. Wilders has said he won’t keep everything [in his manifesto] but that’s not my experience. But he was a good debater, the only one who could take on Rutte.”

Diana, 61, of Surinamese background but born in the Netherlands and from Amsterdam, said: “I voted for my children and my grandchildren. I don’t know if it’s left or right: I did the Stemwijzer voting tool.”

John, 62, an immigrant from Suriname who lives in Amsterdam, did not want to share the party he voted for but said he couldn’t understand the current issues around immigration. “I grew up with all kinds of nationalities,” he said. “I can’t understand all of the hate. History tells us how Jewish people were oppressed and now it’s happening again.”

Gesturing at the nearby Prinsengracht canal, glittering in the sunlight, he added: “The world is so beautiful and people spoil it. The birds fly, the fish swim, we are the evil-doers.”

What are the issues in the Dutch election today?

The last government fell over a bill to reduce asylum seekers, and cutting immigration – including foreign workers – remains a key issue for all main parties, as does the Dutch housing crisis: government-commissioned research suggests the country lacks 390,000 homes.

The green transition – and who will pay for it – is also high on the agenda amid heated debate in the the world’s second largest agricultural exporter, particularly over how to halve illegal nitrogen emission levels and by what date.

Government scandals – delays in compensation to earthquake victims living above the huge Groningen gas field; 20,000 families being wrongly accused of child benefit fraud, often on the basis of ethnicity – have also pushed trust in politics to the fore.

What happens after the vote?

Given the highly fragmented state of Dutch politics, what coalitions are possible is just as important as who actually wins. MPs first appoint an informateur, who sounds parties out and identifies possible alliances.

Once a viable coalition has been found, a formateur – usually the head of the largest party – begins negotiating and drawing up the formal coalition agreement. Last time around, the whole process took a record 271 days.

Read the full explainer here.

A steady stream of voters flocked on Wednesday afternoon to the iconic De Duif church in Amsterdam, which was repurposed for the day into a voting station.

Lisa, 28, an architect from Amsterdam who popped into the church to vote during her lunch break, said that she decided to vote “tactically” for the GreenLeft/Labour party to prevent Geert Wilders’ far-right party PVV from becoming the biggest.

Lisa said:

At first I wanted to vote for one of the smaller left-wing parties but once I saw the polls, I realised I had to vote for GreenLeft/Labour because I don’t want PVV to win. The environment and living conditions are the most important topics for me. I don’t foresee a left-wing government but this is the least I can do.

She added: “There is something grandiose about voting in de Duif … I love the stained glass windows and the massive church organ.”

Lisette, 47, a consultant from Amsterdam said she decided to vote for the People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) because of the “long-term stability the party brings.”

Internationally, I have been very happy with the way VVD’s Mark Rutte has presented our country. Yes, mistakes have been made, but I believe the party will learn from them.

Masha Silaevo, a Dutch student with Russian roots said she only decided this morning that she would vote for the Progressive Party for the Animals.

Silaevo said:

It was a last-minute decision, I thought about it a lot. Many of my left-leaning friends are voting strategically for GreenLeft/Labour because they hope the party becomes the biggest. I thought about it too, but there are a few topics that I disagree with them on, including their lack of support for Palestine. In the end, I wanted to stick to my convictions.

Stijn, 26, a student living in Amsterdam who grew up on a farm in the countryside, said he voted for the pro-farmer BBB movement.

I voted for the Farmer-citizen movement (BBB) because I know how hard it is for them. My parents are farmers and I know first-hand how much they struggle. Other parties go too far with their climate change proposals which is hurting normal working class people. I don’t agree with everything that BBB proposes but I appreciate how they are trying to help the countryside.

Ruben Charbon, small business owner in Amsterdam said:

I voted for GreenLeft/Labour because of our future. As I got older, I started thinking less about what benefits me directly and more about our role on this planet and about climate change. The climate is one of my main reasons for voting for GreenLeft/Labour. I hope we can avoid a right-wing government, although I am not very optimistic.

Here are photos of candidates Frans Timmermans, Geert Wilders and Dilan Yeşilgöz-Zegerius casting their ballots earlier today.

Dutch voters are voting in a knife-edge general election that will usher in the country’s first new prime minister in 13 years, with four parties from left to far right vying to become the largest in parliament.

With the latest polls indicating a rise in support for Geert Wilders’ far-right Party for Freedom (PVV), the final days of campaigning have been marked by discussion over tactical voting and possible coalition arrangements.

The leader of the largely economically and socially liberal People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD), Dilan Yeşilgöz-Zegerius, has broken precedent by saying she would work with Wilders if her party garnered the most votes – although on Tuesday she ruled out supporting him as prime minister if he won the largest share.

If the VVD triumphs, Yeşilgöz-Zegerius, a former refugee who champions stricter migration controls, could become the Netherlands’ first female prime minister.

Frans Timmermans, the former EU heavyweight who returned to the Netherlands to lead a GreenLeft/Labour alliance, has appealed to voters to keep out a government in which the far-right plays a role. According to EenVandaag research, it appears to be having an effect, with almost half of his supporters voting strategically for him instead of smaller parties.

Pieter Omtzigt, leader of the New Social Contract (NSC) – a new centre-right party campaigning for better governance and controlled immigration – has also said he will not enter a coalition that contained Wilders’ party.

Read the full story here.

A first exit poll in the Dutch election is expected at 9pm, with an updated one at 9.30pm.

By 3.45pm, 40% of 13 million voters had voted – slightly less than the figures in 2017 at the same time (43%). Pundits are not comparing today’s election to the 2021 one because, due to coronavirus, voters had three days to vote.

Good evening and welcome to a special edition of the Europe blog, focusing on the Dutch election.

Voters across the Netherlands voted today in a knife-edge general election. Stay tuned for exit polls, results and reactions throughout the evening.

Send tips and comments to lili.bayer@theguardian.com.