Netherlands 1956 general election
What was the result of the 1956 general election in the Netherlands?
Labour Party won 50 of 150 seats with 32.7% of the vote. 95.5% of registered voters cast a ballot.
Netherlands- Held:
- Final result
- ParlGov, read 5 October 2026
Which party won the most seats?
Final results from ParlGov, read : Labour Party won 50 of 150 seats with 32.7% of the vote; 95.5% of registered voters cast a ballot, up 0.5 points on 1952.
- Labour Party 50 +20 seats 32.7% +3.7 points
- Catholic People's Party 49 +19 seats 31.7% +3.0 points
- Anti-Revolutionary Party 15 +3 seats 9.9% −1.4 points
- People's Party for Freedom and Democracy 13 +4 seats 8.8% −0.1 points
- Christian Historical Union 13 +4 seats 8.4% −0.5 points
- Communist Party of the Netherlands 7 +1 seat 4.8% −1.4 points
- Reformed Political Party 3 +1 seat 2.3% −0.2 points
- Reformed Political League 0 0 seats 0.7% 0.0 points
- Seats won
- Change on the previous election at the right
- Share of the vote
- Share at the previous election
- Change in points at the right
Changes are against the Netherlands 1952 general election, party by party.
- Labour Party50
- Catholic People's Party49
- Anti-Revolutionary Party15
- Christian Historical Union13
- People's Party for Freedom and Democracy13
- Communist Party of the Netherlands7
- Reformed Political Party3
Key numbers
32.7%
Share of the vote won by Labour Party
Labour Party won 50 of 150 seats. A majority needs 76.
+20 seats
Seats gained by Labour Party
The largest gain in seats compared with 1952.
95.5%
Voter turnout
Up 0.5 points on 1952.
Seats and votes by party
| Party | Seats | ± seats | % | ± points | Votes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour Party | 50 | +20 | 32.7 | +3.7 | 1,872,209 |
| Catholic People's Party | 49 | +19 | 31.7 | +3.0 | 1,815,310 |
| Anti-Revolutionary Party | 15 | +3 | 9.9 | −1.4 | 567,535 |
| People's Party for Freedom and Democracy | 13 | +4 | 8.8 | −0.1 | 502,530 |
| Christian Historical Union | 13 | +4 | 8.4 | −0.5 | 482,918 |
| Communist Party of the Netherlands | 7 | +1 | 4.8 | −1.4 | 272,054 |
| Reformed Political Party | 3 | +1 | 2.3 | −0.2 | 129,517 |
| Reformed Political League | 0 | 0 | 0.7 | 0.0 | 37,206 |
± is the change against the Netherlands 1952 general election, party by party.
Votes by party
- Labour Party 1,872,209
- Catholic People's Party 1,815,310
- Anti-Revolutionary Party 567,535
- People's Party for Freedom and Democracy 502,530
- Christian Historical Union 482,918
- Communist Party of the Netherlands 272,054
- Reformed Political Party 129,517
- Reformed Political League 37,206
ParlGov lists parties with at least 1 percent of the vote or 2 seats, so the rows do not add up to the valid votes.
How many people voted?
95.5% of the 6,125,210 registered voters cast a ballot (5,849,652 ballots), up 0.5 points on 1952. 5,727,742 of them were valid votes. The highest turnout of this kind in our data, which begins in 1946.
How do the votes compare with the seats?
- Labour Party32.7% of votes33.3% of seats
- Catholic People's Party31.7% of votes32.7% of seats
- Anti-Revolutionary Party9.9% of votes10.0% of seats
- People's Party for Freedom and Democracy8.8% of votes8.7% of seats
- Christian Historical Union8.4% of votes8.7% of seats
- Communist Party of the Netherlands4.8% of votes4.7% of seats
- Reformed Political Party2.3% of votes2.0% of seats
The Gallagher index of disproportionality is 1.0 (0 when seats follow votes exactly); the effective number of parties is 4.3 by votes and 4.1 by seats; Labour Party led Catholic People's Party by 1.0 point of the vote.
Time and source Data as of