These are hectic times for democracy: the US has just completed the elections and in the Netherlands we can go to the voting booth in nine weeks. An important moment that can have direct implications for all organizations, which is why Issuemakers will send you a political update every week from now on to keep you informed of developments.

Although the corona pandemic and government measures will play a major role in the party programs, this will not be the only important aspect of the upcoming elections. The debacle over childcare allowances and the functioning of the executive government will certainly play an important role.

Events seem to be overlapping each other lately. The Rutte III Cabinet has fallen. Minister Wiebes has resigned from his position entirely with immediate effect. Lodewijk Asscher has resigned from his party leadership position. Lilliane Ploumen was presented as party leader of the PvdA on Monday afternoon. In short, so close to the elections there are still many events that could materially change the outcome.

On Tuesday, January 19, the government will hold a debate in the House of Representatives about the resignation of the cabinet. In the coming days, the House of Representatives will draw up a list of controversial topics that will only be dealt with by the new cabinet. The various factions are currently preparing their lists, but it is expected that not much will be classified as controversial. It has already been indicated at the first standing parliamentary committees that all subjects will continue; For example, the environmental law has been declared non-controversial, because rapid implementation is desirable.

It seems clear that a lot will still happen in the political landscape. These political developments and their consequences will be described in general terms in upcoming newsletters. We also invite you to ask specific questions about your

organization or issue so that we can provide you with more direct advice. Later in this update we provide an overview of the latest polls, we introduce some candidates and we have listed some important dates for the elections and the formation of a new cabinet. In the next updates we will supplement this further for you and the party programs of the larger parties will also be discussed.

If you have any questions or would like more information, we would love to hear from you!

Polls: What is the score this week?

In the orange bar you see the current polls of January 14, 2021. In the blue bar you see the current distribution of seats in the House of Representatives. This could look different next week, as these polls are from before the fall of the cabinet. So be sure to keep an eye on next week's newsletter!

source: Frontbencher, Kantar Public

February 1: each party must submit the list of candidates (and other documents).

February 12 – March 22: crocus and election recess of the House of Representatives

March 15, 16 and 17: elections

18th of March: a scout may be appointed. An explorer will investigate various coalition options.

May (or later): a cabinet informant is appointed. The informateur supervises the negotiations of a specific coalition.

August (or later): a cabinet formateur is appointed. A formateur arranges the portfolio distribution and the various cabinet positions. After this, the coalition agreement is drawn up.

September (or later): the new cabinet is formed

September 15: Budget Day (hopefully again this year with many nice hats) where the budgets for 2022 will be presented.