Dutch king calls for compromise as political turmoil leads to more elections

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — King Willem-Alexander appealed Tuesday for the return of a Dutch culture of compromise as the increasingly polarized Netherlands heads to the polls next month for its fourth general elections in less than nine years.

The king's speech to a joint sitting in a Hague theater of both houses of parliament marks the formal opening of the political year and came against a backdrop of political turmoil and the looming Oct. 29 elections.

“Unfortunately, people in the Netherlands seem increasingly to be at loggerheads — on the street, online, at our universities, and not least in The Hague,” the king said in his “speech from the throne,” that is written by the government. “They have entrenched opinions for or against, black or white. As if one person being right automatica