Dutch far-right leader Geert Wilders has restarted his parliamentary election campaign after briefly suspending it following security threats.
“After all these years, I no longer know the feeling of personal freedom. The impact of all that on yourself and your family is often difficult to explain to people who haven’t experienced it themselves,” Wilders, who has lived under armed protection for decades, wrote Wednesday in a post on social media.
“But now elections are coming up, it’s campaign time and I feel a great responsibility for the Netherlands and all PVV voters,” he added, announcing several upcoming debates he plans to attend.
Wilders is the leader of the far-right Party for Freedom (PVV) and is a longtime critic of Islam and immigration. He has received several death threats in the past — including, he says, from the Taliban, al Qaeda and the Islamic State.
He paused his campaign last week after reports that he — along with Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever and other politicians — was targeted by a suspected Islamist terror cell in a foiled attack.
Wilders’ PVV is currently leading the race according to POLITICO’s Poll of Polls ahead of the Oct. 29 parliamentary elections.
The PVV came out on top in the last Dutch election in November 2023 and joined the governing coalition, but Wilders and his party pulled out in June over disagreements on migration policy.
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