The PvdA was a coalition member in the fourth Balkenende cabinet following 22 February 2007.

The Labour Party ( PvdA ) was founded on 9 February 1946, through a merger of three parties: the Social Democratic Workers ' Party ( SDAP ), the minor left-liberal Free-thinking Democratic League ( VDB ) and the small social-Protestant Christian Democratic Union ( CDU ).

After the cabinet crisis of 1958, the PvdA was replaced by the VVD.

The PvdA was in opposition until 1965.

Meanwhile, a younger generation was attempting to gain control of the PvdA.

The PvdA was left in opposition.

The CDA remained the largest party, but it was forced to co-operate with the PvdA and D66 ( the PPR had left the alliance, after losing the 1977 elections ).

The PvdA was left in opposition.

The loss was blamed on the uncharismatic new leader Melkert, the perceived arrogance of the PvdA and the inability to answer to the right-wing populist issues Fortuyn raised, especially immigration and integration.

The PvdA was kept out of cabinet.

Meanwhile, Wouter Bos, State Secretary in the second purple cabinet, was elected leader of the PvdA in a referendum among PvdA members, being elected closely to Jouke de Vries.

In the 2003 elections, Wouter Bos managed to regain almost all seats lost in the previous election, and the PvdA was once again the second largest party of the Netherlands, only slightly smaller than the CDA.

Instead, the PvdA was kept out of government by the formation of cabinet of the CDA, the VVD, and D66, the latter being former allies of PvdA.

It was expected that the PvdA would do well in the upcoming 2006 elections, but the party lost the race for Prime Minister to the Christian Democratic Appeal after suffering a loss of 9 seats.

After the election, a " Purple Coaliton " was considered-it would have required a fourth party in addition to the VVD, PvdA and D66-but talks broke down and the PvdA entered opposition.

The cooperation was frustrated by the formation of the Den Uyl cabinet, established by the leader of the social-democratic PvdA and Prime Minister of the Netherlands Joop den Uyl.

After the 1981 general election, the VVD and the CDA had lost their majority, and the CDA was forced to cooperate with the PvdA.

The CDA was forced to cooperate with the PvdA.

In the third Lubbers cabinet, the ambitious reform project was continued, with some adaptations and protests from the PvdA.

Willem Frederik " Wim " Duisenberg ( 9 July 1935 – 31 July 2005 ) was a Dutch politician of the Labour Party ( PvdA ).

Johannes Marten den Uijl, known as Joop den Uyl (; August 9, 1919 – December 24, 1987 ) was a Dutch politician of the Labour Party ( PvdA ).

In the 2006 municipal elections, the renewed PvdA performed very well.

* The Socialist Party ( SP ), in its first years a radical socialist / communist party, a Maoist split from the Communist Party Netherlands, is now a big socialist party, very conservative on economic issues and advocating more socialism, government control but at the same time taking more conservative positions on issues like integration and national identity than the PvdA, generally populist.

For the remaining years of the municipality's existence, the PvdA had 5 seats on the local council, the SP 3 seats, local party Gemeentebelangen 3 seats as well, and the NCPN 2 seats.

And in the 2006 municipal elections, a few months lather, the PvdA performed particularly well, becoming the largest party in local government.

The PvdA lost the 2002 elections, and the party's parliamentary representation fell from 45 seats to 23.

The electoral alliance between SP and GL in the 1998, 2002 and 2006 elections, and between GreenLeft and PvdA in the 2004 European elections are examples of this position.

After the fall of the first Balkenende cabinet Bos was elected top candidate for the following elections and de facto leader of the PvdA in the 2002 PvdA leadership election by 60 % of the voting party members.

Under Bos the vote and seats of the PvdA nearly doubled from 15 % ( 23 seats ) in 2002 to 27 % ( 42 seats ) in 2003.

Between 1994 and 2002 the Labour Party ( PvdA ) had a conscious strategy to isolate the party, always voting against the latter's proposals.

After TV debates the PvdA ( which had experienced a landslide defeat in the 2002 general election ) of opposition leader Wouter Bos caught up, overtaking the VVD and regaining some of the territory lost in the previous election.

The biggest difference between the first and second party was at the 2002 elections, the most dramatic elections in Dutch history, when especially PvdA lost many votes to LPF, which became second biggest after CDA with 17. 0 % of the votes.

Between 1973 and 2002, he has served three terms as Minister for Development Cooperation and one term as Minister of Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment in the States-General for the Labour Party ( PvdA ).

For the Dutch general election of 2002 he was the lijsttrekker, Dijkstal and Ad Melkert the leader of the Labour Party ( PvdA ) were the front runners to become the next Prime Minister, but the unexpected arrival of Pim Fortuyn of Livable Netherlands ( LN ) and later the Pim Fortuyn List ( LPF ), turned the polls.

The 1977 general election were won by the PvdA, but the ideological and personal conflict between Van Agt and Den Uyl prevented the formation of a new centre-left cabinet.

After the 1989 general election, the PvdA returned to cabinet together with the CDA.

In the 1994 general election, the PvdA and CDA coalition lost its majority in parliament.

After the 2003 general election, the Christian Democrats were forced to begin cabinet negotiations with the PvdA.

In the 1971 general election the party won an additional four seats and it formed a Shadow Cabinet with the Labour Party ( PvdA ) and the Christian left Political Party of Radicals ( PPR ).

However, in the election campaign for the Dutch general elections of 2006 the PvdA – for the second time campaigning under his leadership – didn't manage to maintain this position as biggest party.

Following the 1998 general elections in which Melkert was the PvdA's fifth ranking candidate, he became leader of the PvdA in parliament.