How the anti-Islam, orthodox-protestant SGP has moved center stage in Dutch politics

In 2019, the Dutch orthodox-protestant Staatkundig Gereformeerde Partij (SGP; Political Reformed Party) received widespread criticism for supporting the so-called Nashville statement defending the traditional marriage between man and woman, rejecting homosexuality and transgenderism as sinful. For instance, the public prosecution office launched an investigation, rainbow flags were hoisted on church buildings, town halls, and universities, while the liberal prime minister Mark Rutte said he shivered when reading the statement. It had not been the first time the SGP had been castigated for its gender views. Its exclusion of female party members had been reason for several court cases on the SGP’s unequal treatment men and women. In response, the SGP and its constituency has felt their religious freedoms increasingly encroached upon. However, the SGP also wants to curtail religious freedoms of Muslim citizens. It thus has common ground with the radical-right populist parties. As they also share scepticism on climate change and European integration, most SGP politicians are willing to cooperate with them, for which they receive criticism both from inside and outside the party. Established in 1918, the SGP had been for long a marginalized party due to its religious views. However, and despite ongoing criticism on its views, it has been increasingly cooperating with others, not the least with PM Mark Rutte, who had to cobble together majorities in the highly fragmented parliament of the Netherlands. The paper’s key question is therefore how a religious party criticized for its gender views, has yet moved center stage in a secularized country, and how its own views has been modified by its closer engagement with both traditional and radical-right populist parties.