Rob Jetten is still the leading candidate to become the Netherlands’ next prime minister after Democrats 66 (D66) emerged as the top party in the October 29, 2025 election. But recent developments show that his path to office now depends on whether he can make a minority cabinet work in one of Europe’s most fragmented parliaments.
Early life and political awakening
Born on March 25, 1987, in Veghel and raised in Uden in North Brabant, Jetten grew up in a Roman Catholic family. His entry into civic engagement began after a shocking incident in his hometown, when a Turkish primary school was set on fire and he learned the culprits were people he knew. He has described how that moment shaped his interest in public responsibility and local politics.
Education and early career
Jetten studied public administration at Radboud University and later worked at ProRail, the Dutch rail infrastructure and planning organisation. Those years gave him experience in large public systems and long-term planning: topics that later became central in his political profile, especially around sustainability and infrastructure.
Rapid political rise
After entering parliament in 2017, Jetten rose quickly inside D66. He later served as Minister for Climate and Energy Policy and briefly as First Deputy Prime Minister, giving him cabinet-level visibility before D66’s breakthrough election result in 2025.
Photo Credits: Martijn Beekman / D66
2025 Election results
D66 won 26 seats in the 2025 election, finishing level on seats with Geert Wilders’ PVV, in an outcome that set up complicated coalition arithmetic. Even with a strong result, D66 still needs partners that can work together, and that has proven difficult.
Where talks stand now, a minority cabinet plan
The most important update is that coalition talks have moved toward a minority government scenario.
Recent reporting says D66, CDA, and VVD are negotiating to govern together without a parliamentary majority, holding 66 seats combined. This would be unusual in Dutch politics, because it means the cabinet must constantly negotiate issue-by-issue support from other parties to survive key votes.
Jetten has acknowledged the challenge of finding stable support in such a fragmented political landscape.
Why a minority plan is being considered
The minority route reflects several political blockages:
Many mainstream parties have been unwilling to govern with Wilders after recent instability.
The VVD has been reluctant to form a coalition with the left-wing GroenLinks–PvdA alliance.
D66 has signaled resistance to bringing in JA21, even though that party could help a right-leaning coalition get closer to a majority.
In practice, this means Jetten may lead a cabinet that must rely on “tolerance” support from outside the coalition: possibly different parties for different topics, depending on what is being voted on.
What this means for Jetten’s leadership
Politically, the situation makes Jetten both powerful and exposed:
Powerful, because he is the central figure in talks and could still become prime minister if the minority deal holds.
Exposed, because minority governments are vulnerable to sudden parliamentary defeats, especially on budgets and migration policy: two areas that often trigger crises in Dutch coalition politics.
If a minority cabinet is formed, Jetten’s success would depend less on signing one big coalition agreement and more on his ability to build working majorities repeatedly, week after week.
Personal life and representation
Jetten’s potential premiership would also be historically significant: he would be the youngest and first openly gay prime minister of the Netherlands. That aspect has been widely noted, even as his political brand focuses more on policy and coalition-building than on identity.
What to watch next
Can D66, CDA, and VVD agree on a shared programme strong enough to govern?
Which parties might provide outside support and on what terms?
Can a cabinet without a House majority and without a Senate majority stay stable long enough to implement major reforms?
At this point, Jetten is still “in pole position,” but the latest shift toward a minority plan shows how narrow the path has become, even for the election’s leading candidate.
