Strong Local Drenthe Explained

Strong Local Drenthe
Native Name:	Sterk Lokaal Drenthe
Colorcode:	FE00FF
Leader:	Alfred Schoenmaker
Chairperson:	John Uffels
Headquarters:	Emmen, Netherlands
Ideology:	Regionalism
Position:	Centre
Country:	Netherlands
Affiliation1 Title:	National affiliation
Affiliation1:	Independent Politics Netherlands
Seats1 Title:	Provincial Council of Drenthe

Strong Local Drenthe (Dutch; Flemish: Sterk Lokaal Drenthe, in Dutch; Flemish pronounced as /stɛrk loːˈkaːl ˈdrɛn.tə/) is a regionalist political party in the Netherlands, a partnership of various local political parties in the province of Drenthe. The party is represented in the Provincial Council in that province and is a member of Independent Politics Netherlands.

History

Under the name Strong Local (Dutch; Flemish: Sterk Lokaal), the party first participated in the elections for the Provincial Council of Drenthe in 2015 with Aimée van der Ham as lead candidate and won one seat.^[1] This seat was retained at the 2019 Dutch provincial elections. After the elections, the Strong Local and 50PLUS factions decided to merge into Strong Local Drenthe, which would give the party two seats,^[2] but the 50PLUS faction leader still decided to continue independently, starting the new party OpDrenthe.^[3] Strong Local did change its name to Strong Local Drenthe. The merger plans led to some unrest within the party: Assen alderman Janna Booij decided to cancel her membership of Strong Local, and the group leader of Strong Local left the Provincial Council.^{[4] [5]}

The party retained its seat after the 2023 provincial elections. It is represented by Independent Politics Netherlands in the Dutch Senate.

Ideology

Some of Strong Local Drenthe's key points are:^[6]

• Fewer rules for small and medium-sized businesses
• Less interference from the province with the municipalities
• Better accessibility by improving the N34, the N48 and the Zwolle-Emmen railway line
• Fiber optic connections throughout the province
• Less focus on wind turbines and more on other sustainable forms of energy

Election results

Provincial elections

Election year	Drenthe
	of overall votes	% of overall vote	of overall seats won	+/–
2015	7,057^[7]	3.64%		New
2019	9,344^[8]	4.09%
2023	7,485^[9]	2.84%

External links

• Official website

Notes and References

1. Web site: Nieuwe partij Provinciale Statenverkiezingen: Sterk Lokaal . New party States-Provincial elections: Strong Local . Wakker Emmen . 24 October 2023 . nl.
2. Web site: 50Plus en Sterk Lokaal samen verder in de Staten . 50Plus and Strong Local continue together in the States . . 1 May 2019 . 24 October 2023 . nl.
3. Web site: Frank Duut start eigen party: OpDrenthe . Frank Duut starts own party: OpDrenthe . RTV Drenthe . 26 June 2019 . 24 October 2023 . nl.
4. Web site: Wethouder Assen zegt lidmaatschap Sterk Lokaal op . Alderman Assen cancels membership of Strong Local . RTV Drenthe . 11 May 2019 . 24 October 2023 . nl.
5. Web site: Statenlid Douwe Oosterveen stapt op bij Sterk Lokaal . States-Provincial member Douwe Oosterveen is resigning from Strong Local . RTV Drenthe . 21 June 2019 . 24 October 2023 . nl.
6. Web site: Speerpunten Sterk Lokaal Drenthe . Spearheads Strong Local Drenthe . Sterk Lokaal Drenthe . 24 October 2023 . nl.
7. Web site: Provinciale Staten 18 maart 2015 . States-Provincial 18 March 2015 . Verkiezingsuitslagen.nl . 24 October 2023 . nl.
8. Web site: Verkiezingsuitslagen voor de provincie Drenthe . Election results for the province of Drenthe . Alle Cijfers . 24 October 2023 . nl.
9. Web site: Model P 22-2. Proces-verbaal van de uitslag van de verkiezing van de provinciale staten. De Verkiezingen van de leden van de provinciale staten van Drenthe . Model P 22-2. Official report of the election result of the states-provincial. The Elections of the members of the states-provincial of Drenthe . Kiesraad . 23 March 2023 . 24 October 2023 . nl.