Elections in the Netherlands

The local council elections (Gemeenteraad) will take place on Wednesday, 18 March 2026. You will receive your voting pass no later than two weeks before the election day.

When can you vote?
On Wednesday 18 March, from 7:30 to 21:00h.

Who can vote
To be allowed to vote, you must:

Hold Dutch or EU nationality, or have lived in the Netherlands legally and without a break for 5 years
Be 18 years of age or older
Be registered in the personal records database (BRP) in Tilburg

Who can you vote for?
In the run-up to the elections a list of candidates will be sent to you at your home address. You can read about the candidates’ plans on their parties’ websites.

What do you need in order to vote?

Your voting pass.
Proof of identity. If expired, the expiry date must be less than 5 years ago. The following are considered valid proof of ID:
- all passports, identity cards and driving licences from EU countries and from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway
- a passport or identity card from Switzerland
- a document proving your residence permit issued by the Netherlands

Voting pass
If your voting pass is lost or damaged, please contact your local council and request a new one. You can do this in writing until 13 March or in person at the council office until 17 March at 12:00 noon.

Where to vote
You can vote wherever is easiest for you. Click on the map showing more than 90 polling stations. There is always a polling station nearby. Shortly before the election, you will also receive a list of all polling stations by post.

Most polling stations are open from 7:30 AM to 9:00 PM. Please check the map.

Authorize someone else (volmacht)
If you cannot go to the polling station yourself, you can authorize someone else to vote on your behalf. There are two ways to do this:

By transferring your voting pass to them: Fill in the back of your voting pass and give it to the person who will vote for you. You should also give them a copy of your ID. This can be a photo taken with your mobile phone or tablet. Make sure the details are clearly visible
By written proxy: For this, you can use the form ‘Volmacht’ (in Dutch) from your local council. Both you and the person voting for you must complete the form. Please return it to the council by 17 March.