Geert Wilders’ right-wing Dutch party, widely seen as Islamophobic, won parliamentary elections on Wednesday, according to exit polls, in a political earthquake that will be felt far beyond the Netherlands, AFP reports.

According to the Ipos poll, the PVV (Freedom Party) won 35 seats and won the election by a landslide.

Second place went to the left alliance of Frans Timmermans with 26 seats. According to the survey, the center-right VVD party won 23 seats.

If the final results confirm Wilders’ victory, it will be a sharp rightward turn that will be seen with concern in Brussels: The PVV has promised a referendum on the Netherlands’ membership of the European Union.

“Maybe it’s not what other parties in Europe or other countries are looking for, but it’s democracy,” the 60-year-old politician said after casting his vote.

Anti-migration message

His anti-immigration message, which includes closing borders and deporting illegal immigrants, appears to have resonated with Dutch voters.

But while Wilders appears to be winning in the polls, it is unclear whether he will be able to form a governing coalition.

The leaders of the other three main parties have assured that they will not participate in the PVV-led coalition.

Kate Parker of the Economist Intelligence Unit said it would lead to a “constitutional impasse” in the EU’s fifth-largest economy.