2002 Dutch general election
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General elections were held in the Netherlands on 15 May 2002. The elections were amongst the most dramatic in Dutch history, not just in terms of the electoral results, as they were completely overshadowed by the assassination of leader Pim Fortuyn only nine days before election day.
Fortuyn had led the Pim Fortuyn List (LPF) party, a right-wing populist party that represented his political views. He had drawn controversy in the campaign with his views on Islam, attacked the government's immigration policies and had also questioned many aspects of government by the previous 'purple' cabinets of Wim Kok, which he blamed for everything from crime to waiting lists in health services. After his death, the LPF made their general election debut with 17% of the vote, coming in second place. The Christian Democratic Appeal, who took a neutral stance towards Fortuyn, gained seats to become the country's largest political party. On the other hand, the three parties in the government all lost a significant number of seats.
Two months after the election, Jan Peter Balkenende formed his first cabinet in a coalition with the CDA, LPF and VVD. However, the LPF was unstable due to their lack of strong leadership and their members' lack of experience, resulting in the new cabinet resigning before the end of the year.
