Prime Minister Mark Rutte of the free-market VVD party celebrates the victory. (AP photo)THE HAGUE, NETHERLANDS - Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte on Wednesday was moving toward a dominating parliamentary election victory over anti-Islam lawmaker Geert Wilders, who looked like he failed the year's first litmus test for populism in Europe. The Netherlands' main exit poll suggests Rutte's party won 31 seats in the 150-place legislature, 12 more than Wilders' party, which shared second place with two other parties. Three parties each won 19 - the pro-EU centre party D66, the Christian Democrat CDA and Wilders' Party for Freedom. The coalition Rutte's VVD party had with Labor can no longer be replicated and the prime minister is likely to look to the right for new coalition partners.

Source: Bangkok Post March 15, 2017 22:30 UTC