The Reformed Political Party ( , SGP) is a theocratic and conservative Reformed ChristianThese sources describe the SGP as a Calvinist (Reformed Christian) political party: political party in the Netherlands. The SGP is the oldest political party in the Netherlands existing in its present form, and has been in opposition for its entire existence. Since 1925, it has won between 1.5% and 2.5% of the votes in general elections invariably receiving 23 seats in the House of Representatives, making it the country's most stable political party in terms of representation. Owing to its orthodox political ideals and its traditional role in the opposition, the party is considered a testimonial party. Since 2023 its leader has been Chris Stoffer.
History
Foundation
The SGP was founded in 1918 by orthodox Protestants led by Yerseke pastor Gerrit Hendrik Kersten, some of which originated from the Protestant Anti-Revolutionary Party (ARP). After the Pacification of 1917, compulsory voting and proportional representation was introduced in the Netherlands. The founders did not want to vote for existing parties, but saw an opportunity for a smaller party because of proportional representation. The party first participated in the 1918 general election. The hastily organised campaign focused on the ARP and its support of what SGP called state coercion, such as compulsory vaccination and insurance law. Because some might object to him combining being politician and pastor, Kersten was not a candidate, but instead Barend Lemans and Pieter Gijze. The party received over 5,000 votes, not enough for a seat.
Despite not winning a seat, the SGP continued its activities In 1919, the party board started a petition against the (Disability Act), which forced workers to pay premiums to insure against disability. It received 4,800 signatures. The party encouraged its members to send back their stamp cards which tracked their premiums. In December 1920, the Senate passed a law that would accommodate their conscientious objections. A similar petition against compulsory vaccination received 27,059 signatures in 1922, but sorted no effect.
1922–1945 For the 1922 general election, Kersten was lead candidate, accepting objections within his electorate. The party won one seat in the House of Representatives, which was taken by Kersten. His speeches in parliament regularly received media attention, for example when he opposed the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam. In the 1925 general election, the party won another seat which was taken by Pieter Zandt.
Later that year, the anti-Catholic SGP would cause the fall of the second Ruijs de Beerenbrouck cabinet in what became known as the . During the debate on the budget of the Foreign Affairs Ministry, Kersten had proposed cutting the budget of the diplomatic mission of the Netherlands to the Holy See. The amendment received a majority, because it was supported by the Protestant Christian Historical Union (CHU), which was in cabinet together with the Catholic General League. It resulted in more publicity and a third seat in the 1929 general election, which was taken by . Kersten, Zandt and Van Dis formed the parliamentary group until the 1937 general election, when the SGP lost one seat. The SGP did not achieve much in parliament other than during the Night of Kersten, but achieved some smaller goals outside of parliament through contact with the ministers.
Kersten saw the German invasion of the Netherlands in 1940 as a punishment for its sins. He rejected resistance against the German occupation and was seen as friendly towards them. After the war, he was nominated again as lead candidate, but he was barred from the House of Representatives for his stances during the war.
1945–present
Kersten was succeeded by Zandt, under whose leadership the SGP was very stable, continually getting 2% of votes. In the 1956 general election, the SGP profited from the enlargement of parliament, and entered the Senate for the first time. It lost that seat in 1960 Senate election, but regained it in the 1971 Senate election.
In 1961 Zandt died and was succeeded by Van Dis sr. After ten years he stood down in favour of Reverend Hette Abma, who also stepped down after ten years, in favour of Henk van Rossum, a civil engineer. In the 1984 European Parliament election, the SGP joined the two other orthodox Protestant parties, the Reformatory Political Federation (RPF) and the Reformed Political League (GPV). They won one seat in the European Parliament, which was taken by SGP member Leen van der Waal, a mechanical engineer.
In 1986, Van Rossum was succeeded by Bas van der Vlies. In the 1994 election the party lost one seat in the House, regained it in 1998, and lost it again in 2002. During the 2003 cabinet formation, the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) and the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) held talks with the SGP — the first time that the SGP was seriously considered as a possible coalition partner. Ultimately, the Democrats 66 joined the second Balkenende cabinet instead of the SGP, mostly because of the ideological differences between the VVD and the SGP.
In 2010, Kees van der Staaij succeeded Van der Vlies. During the 2010 cabinet formation, the negotiating CDA, VVD and Party for Freedom (PVV) took into account some wishes of the SGP, so that SGP would provide confidence and supply in the Senate where the first Rutte cabinet did not have a majority.
Ideology and political positions As a Protestant fundamentalist party the SGP draws much from its ideology from the Reformed Christian tradition, specifically the ecclesiastical doctrinal standards known as the Three Forms of Unity, including an unamended version of the Belgic Confession (). It includes 21 words that were removed by the synod of the Reformed Churches in the Netherlands in 1905, which state that the government must "eliminate and eradicate all idolatry and false religion, so as to destroy the kingdom of Antichrist". This contrasted with the other two Protestant parties, the Anti-Revolutionary Party (ARP) and the Christian Historical Union (CHU) when SGP was founded, which had accepted the change.
Church and state The SGP is a theocratic party, although its precise position on the relation between religion and politics has changed over time. The SGP does favor some, but no strict, separation of church and state. The church and state should cooperate, including the advancement of the true faith. The state should not curtail the freedom of the church, while the church similarly should not impose upon the state. Abma rejected theocracy as form of government, instead harmonizing theocracy and democracy. Over time, it has however become more realistic, accepting the religiously neutral state. The party has also tried to distinguish its theocratic positions from Islamic theocracy. The SGP supports freedom of conscience, but not an unconditional freedom of religion.
The SGP is critical of Islam, although Muslims have also been seen as allies against secularism. With the argument that Judeo-Christian culture must be preserved, the party opposes public expressions such as public calls to prayer, big mosques and minarets.
Social issues The SGP has generally opposed women's suffrage, both passive and active, believing it to be contrary to a "woman's calling". Some within the party however argue that the biblical argumentation is not clear or that this could hurt them electorally. In 1989 the party changed its principles, approving women voting if they can answer this to God in their conscience. No similar change was made for passive suffrage.
The SGP opposes gay rights. In May 2019, the party voted against banning conversion therapy. In 2024, the SGP introduced a motion in the House of Representatives to call on the government to withdraw the so-called "transgender bill" which had been introduced by the previous Dutch government and would enable people under the age of 16 to legally declare their gender without requiring a medical diagnosis.
The SGP is opposed to abortion and euthanasia. It supports the reintroduction of the death penalty.
Israel and Judaism The party has evolved into a pro-Israel party. Due to its early focus on anti-Catholicism and belief in supersessionism, the SGP and Kersten were critical of the reception of German-Jewish refugees in the years leading up to World War II. The establishment of the state of Israel in 1948 and its victories against neighboring Arab countries contributed to increased sympathy among SGP members. From 1968 onwards, this was also evident in Abma's contributions in parliament. In 2000, a separate article was included in the party's manifesto emphasizing the importance of good diplomatic relations with Israel and advocating for secure borders for Israel.
Representation
House of Representatives
Election Lead candidate List Votes % Seats +/– 1918 List 5,180 0.39 New 1922 List 26,744 0.91 1 1925 List 62,513 2.03 1 1929 List 71,420 2.27 1 1933 List 93,275 2.51 0 1937 List 78,619 1.94 1 1946Pieter Zandt List 101,761 2.16 0 1948 List 116,864 2.37 0 1952 List 129,073 2.42 0 1956 List 129,515 2.26 1 1959 List 129,678 2.16 0 1963 List 143,549 2.29 0 1967 List 138,119 2.01 0 1971Hette Abma List 148,221 2.35 0 1972 List 163,114 2.21 0 1977 List 177,010 2.13 0 1981Henk van Rossum List 171,324 1.97 0 1982 List 156,636 1.90 0 1986Bas van der Vlies List 159,740 1.74 0 1989 List 166,082 1.87 0 1994 List 155,251 1.73 1 1998 List 153,583 1.78 1 2002 List 163,562 1.72 1 2003 List 150,305 1.56 0 2006 List 153,266 1.56 0 2010Kees van der Staaij List 163,581 1.74 0 2012 List 196,780 2.09 1 2017 List 218,950 2.08 0 2021 List 215,249 2.07 0 2023 Chris Stoffer List 217,270 2.08 0 2025 List 238,093 2.25 0
Senate
Election Lead candidate List Votes Weightedvotes % Seats +/– 2023 List 17 4,436 2.76
European Parliament Election List Votes % Seats +/– EP Group 1979 List 126,412 2.23 New 2024 List 228,036 3.66 0 Between 1984 and 2019, the SGP filed joint candidate lists with the Christian Union and its predecessors. See CU-SGP for these election results.
Since the 1984 European Parliament election the party has had one elected representative in the European Parliament. From 1984 to 1997 Leen van der Waal was the representative, from 1999 Bas Belder was the party's representative, succeeded by Bert-Jan Ruissen in the 2019 European Parliament election. In European Parliament elections, the SGP formed one candidate list with the Christian Union, called CU–SGP, until the 2024 European Parliament election. The SGP's representative is a member of the European Christian Political Party and European Conservatives and Reformists Group (ECR Group).
Electorate The SGP has had a very stable electorate since first entering the States-General in 1922. Since winning a second seat in 1926, it has varied between two and three seats in the House of Representatives.
Religion Most of its electorate is formed by so-called pietistic Reformed Protestants (""), Reformed Protestants for whom personal religious experience is very important. Most of the Old Reformed Congregations and the Reformed Congregations are considered pietistic Reformed Protestants. Pietistic Reformed Protestants are also present in the Christian Reformed Churches, the Reformed Association in the Protestant Church in the Netherlands and the Restored Reformed Church.
Geographical