The era of Rob Jetten in the Netherlands! He became the country's first gay prime minister.

23.02.2026 23:18

In the Netherlands, members of the minority government led by Prime Minister Rob Jetten were sworn in before King Willem-Alexander and officially began their duties. The 38-year-old Jetten became the country's youngest and first openly gay prime minister.

For the third time in more than four years, a government change has occurred in the Netherlands.

ROB JETTEN HAS TAKEN OFFICE IN THE NETHERLANDS

The new cabinet, consisting of 18 ministers and 10 state secretaries, officially took office in a ceremony held at the Huis ten Bosch Palace. Prime Minister Rob Jetten stated in a post on the social media platform of the US-based company X, "Royal Decrees have been signed. It is a great honor to take office as Prime Minister. We have sworn in. We will begin. We are getting to work."

After the oath-taking ceremony, the ministers posed for a traditional government photo with King Willem-Alexander on the stairs of the Huis ten Bosch Palace.

CLIMATE PROTEST DURING THE CEREMONY

During the oath-taking ceremony, the environmental group Extinction Rebellion held a demonstration in front of the palace with about 20 people. The protesters blocked one of the roads leading to the palace, and some glued themselves to the ground.

In a post from Extinction Rebellion's social media account, it was stated, "We are disrupting the cabinet's oath-taking ceremony at Huis ten Bosch Palace, Jetten is not keeping his promises! Climate, refugees, justice, everything is failing. We demand a truly fair coalition agreement."

CONTINUOUS ALLIANCE SEARCH IN THE MINORITY GOVERNMENT

In the Dutch parliament, which has a total of 150 seats, the minority government consists of a total of 66 members from the Democrats 66 (D66), the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), and the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD).

Since the government cannot achieve a majority in parliament, it will have to seek consensus with opposition parties on important decisions.

THE YOUNGEST AND FIRST GAY PRIME MINISTER

Rob Jetten, at the age of 38, became the youngest and first gay prime minister in the country's history. Dilan Yeşilgöz from VVD became the Minister of Defense, and Bart van den Brink from CDA became the Minister of Asylum and Migration. Yeşilgöz and Van Den Brink will also serve as deputy prime ministers.

David van Weel from VVD will take on the Ministry of Justice and Security, Pieter Heerma from CDA will handle the Ministry of the Interior and Kingdom Relations, Elanor Boekholt-O'Sullivan from D66 will oversee the Ministry of Housing and Spatial Planning, Tom Berendsen from CDA will manage the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Sjoerd Sjoerdsma from D66 will be responsible for the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation.

Eelco Heinen from VVD will be appointed as the Minister of Finance, Rianne Letschert from D66 will take on the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, Jaimi van Essen from D66 will oversee the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Safety and Nature, Vincent Karremans from VVD will manage the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, Heleen Herbert from CDA will handle the Ministry of Economic Relations and Climate, and Stientje van Veldhoven from D66 will be appointed as the Minister of Climate and Green Growth.

Hans Vijlbrief from D66 will take on the Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment, Thierry Aartsen from VVD will handle the Ministry of Labor and Participation, Sophie Hermans from VVD will oversee the Ministry of Public Health, Welfare and Sport, and Mirjam Sterk from CDA will manage the Ministry of Long-Term Care, Youth and Sports.

In the early elections held on October 29, 2025, D66 received the most votes, becoming the leading party with 26 members of parliament.

The far-right Freedom Party, led by Geert Wilders, received the same percentage of votes as D66, resulting in 26 members of parliament, VVD had 22, the Green Left (GroenLinks) and the Labor Party (PvdA) coalition had 20, and CDA had 18 seats.

Seven members of parliament from the Freedom Party separated from the party in January due to Wilders' policies and formed a separate group.