ABSTRACT
Introduction Following the 1994 parliamentary elections, a Cabinet was formed in the Netherlands without the participation of Christian Democratic parties. This statement may not strike the reader as particularly remarkable, but it provides an important perspective when one adds that this was the first time that this had occurred since the first elections under universal suffrage in 1918. With the exception of the period of German occupation, Christian Democrats were in power for an uninterrupted period longer in the Netherlands than the Bolsheviks in Russia. From 1918 until 1967 the three major Christian Democratic parties held half or more of the seats in Parliament. After the loss of their majority position in 1967 they were able to continue in office because of their position in the centre of the political spectrum; with the right and the left unwilling to join in a coalition, no coalition could be formed without them. However, when twenty seats were lost in 1994 and the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) fell to only thirty-four of the 150 seats, this dominance was also lost. Moreover, the Labour (PvdA) and Liberal (VVD) parties dropped their refusal to co-operate together in a coalition and along with the social-liberal D66 formed a Cabinet without Christian Democrats. This combination proved so successful that it was continued after the 1998 parliamentary elections.
