Netherlands 2014 EP Voting Patterns: From Euphile to Eurosceptic

Abstract

This chapter examines Dutch public opinion toward the European Union (EU) in a longitudinal perspective. From being a traditional core pro-European country, the Netherlands has recently experienced widespread euroscepticism that has become mainstream. The European Parliament (EP) 2014 elections witnessed this evolution. Yet, Dutch euroscepticism has previously been shown to consist of multiple dimensions. In this chapter, we revisit the dimensional structure of EU attitudes in the aftermath of the Eurozone Crisis. Using four-wave panel survey data from the Netherlands (2013–14), we show that indeed at the aggregate level there is stability in Dutch public opinion. The five-dimensional structure of EU attitudes still holds, while the increased importance of EU attitudes for voting behavior in EP elections is also highlighted.