At a party Congress on 23 September, ALDE Party member VVD officially ratified the appointment of Dilan Yesilgöz-Zegerius as the party’s new leader ahead of upcoming snap parliamentary elections in the Netherlands on 22 November. 

At the meeting in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, party members officially adopted the campaign manifesto, held a General Assembly and were addressed by Yeşilgöz-Zegerius during a keynote speech.  

Dit weekend hadden we een fantastisch congres met ruim 1700 aanwezigen. Met @DilanYesilgoz zijn we begonnen aan een nieuw hoofdstuk van de @VVD.

Dit congres was er niet geweest zonder het topwerk van onze mensen van het partijbureau, vrijwilligers en leden. Dank jullie wel! 🧡💙 pic.twitter.com/P6Bh9fJ6Bt

— Eric Wetzels (@EricWetzels) September 25, 2023

VVD also presented the full 80-strong list of candidates for the upcoming elections with three female candidates topping the selection, as Yesilgöz-Zegerius is joined by Sophie Hermans and Bente Becker, both Members of the Dutch Parliament since 2017. 

In her intervention, Yesilgöz-Zegerius said: “From my parents, I learned to cherish freedom and stand up for others when their freedom was threatened. But we face losing ever more of this ‘oxygen’, with ever less understanding for one another and politics operating increasingly from distrust.” 

“It’s not for nothing that our manifesto is called: giving space, defining borders. I believe in a country that gives people space where possible and sets boundaries to protect our freedom.” 

Key topics and issues in VVD’s manifesto include a reform of migration and asylum procedures, a plan to make the Dutch economy the smartest and most sustainable in the world, various policy proposals to enhance safety and security and ways to improve the quality of life whilst tackling the cost of living and investing in a clean future. 

Lijsttrekker @DilanYesilgoz bij haar speech op het verkiezingscongres. 👇 pic.twitter.com/Q2dbVN6wl9

— VVD (@VVD) September 23, 2023

Photo: VVD

This article is an informative update on ALDE Party members' recent activities. ALDE Party has not provided any financial support for the above activities.