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| - Dutch voters cast their ballots at bike-through polling stations and museums Wednesday in an election that Prime Minister Mark Rutte cast as a choice of the best leader to deal with the coronavirus pandemic. Europe's first Covid election of 2021 has taken place over three days, with the elderly and at-risk voting at selected locations on Monday and Tuesday before the polls opened for everyone else on Wednesday. Seeking a fourth term in office after a decade in power, Rutte said he was "cautiously" optimistic as he arrived on his bike to cast his vote at a school in The Hague. Opinion polls show his liberal VVD (People's Party for Freedom and Democracy) on course to lead another coalition government, with the anti-Islam PVV (Freedom Party) of Geert Wilders in second place. I am proud of what we have achieved in the last 10 years in the Netherlands," he told reporters, adding that it was "the best performing economy in the whole of Europe. "The main question during these elections on the table is who best can lead this country forward through the crisis of corona, and then make a new start with this country, I hope from summer onwards." Rutte also rejected criticism of the slow-starting Dutch vaccination programme, saying that buying the jabs was "a European issue" but the Netherlands was "working very hard to apply the ones we have and to make the most of a success out of it." With a near-record 37 parties in the mix, and months of coalition talks looming in the fractured Dutch parliamentary scene, the shape of any future government is still up in the air. Rutte ruled out a coalition with Wilders "because of what he said about Islam and the Koran", or with far-right, Covid-sceptic Forum for Democracy leader Thierry Baudet because of what he "has done in terms of anti-Semitism and racism". However one of the parties in his current coalition, the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) of finance minister Wopke Hoekstra, would be "natural partners" for him again, Rutte said. Rutte has dipped slightly in the polls in recent weeks but still has around 25 percent of the vote, which would give the VVD slightly more than their current 32 of the 150 seats in parliament. His closest rival, Wilders, is on around 13 percent. The bleached-blonde Wilders, hoping the PVV will remain the second largest in parliament, criticised Rutte's handling of the coronavirus crisis. The Netherlands has recorded more than 1.1 million coronavirus infections and more than 16,000 deaths, and is currently under its most stringent health measures yet. "I don't blame the Dutch government of course for the virus. But they were not prepared," Wilders said, adding that "our patients had to be sent to Germany even." Wilders, who lives under round-the-clock state protection after receiving death threats for his criticism of Islam, insisted that his party should be allowed to join government. "If you look at any poll in Holland we are doing quite well, within the range of being the second party... You might not like it, but it's true," he said. Voting closes at 9:00 pm (2000 GMT) with exit polls expected soon afterwards. Mask-wearing citizens will be able to vote in locations ranging from the famed Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam to railway stations. The elections have been adapted for the pandemic, with early voting for vulnerable people, and over-70s allowed to cast their ballots by post. People have also been allowed out past a 9:00 pm (2000 GMT) nationwide curfew to ensure they can vote -- the controversial health restriction in January sparked the Netherlands' worst riots for decades. Anti-lockdown discontent continues to simmer, with protests against Rutte in The Hague on Sunday. Rutte however has maintained his reputation as the "Teflon" premier for emerging unscathed from crises. He also recently shrugged off the fact that he had to resign in January over a scandal in which thousands of parents were falsely accused of scamming childcare. Victory on Wednesday would confirm him as one of the EU's longest-serving leaders after Germany's Angela Merkel and Hungary's Viktor Orban -- even if his hawkish stance on spending has seen other EU chiefs dub him "Mr No." dk/lc
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