HE HAGUE, May 15 — Dutch politics took a startling swing to the right in parliamentary elections as followers of the slain populist Pim Fortuyn turned out in force today to push his anti-immigrant and law-and-order agenda.
Mr. Fortuyn's party finished stronger than predicted before his assassination stunned the country last week, coming in second behind the conservative Christian Democrats. It is now likely to play a key role in the new coalition government.
Today's elections, among the most volatile in the Netherlands in several decades, were being closely watched in the rest of Europe where the anti-immigrant mood has been growing and right-wing parties have made important gains.
Although the results were still unofficial, they were remarkable for the party, List Pim Fortuyn, that the outspoken former sociology professor formed only in February and had run almost single-handedly until he was shot dead, reportedly by an animal-rights activist.
The drama of the elections, which were dominated by the killing of Mr. Fortuyn and drew an unusually high turnout of 79 percent, is not yet over. It is likely to take days or weeks of horse trading over policies and ministerial jobs to form a coalition government.
Mr. Fortuyn's followers, who have not yet named a new leader, are expected to get 26 of the 150 seats. The Christian Democrats, who lost power in 1994, were the biggest winner with an estimated 40 seats.
The Christian Democrat leader, Jan Peter Balkenende, 46, sometimes called the Dutch Harry Potter because of his looks, could become the next prime minister. He is known for his sharp wit and conservative moral values about which he has written extensively. This week, though, when asked about his philosophy, he cracked that he was reading up on Harry Potter.
The Labor Party of the Dutch prime minister, Wim Kok, appeared to be the biggest loser, with a stunning drop from 45 to 24 seats, its worst results in recent memory.
Friends said that it was a painful blow for Mr. Kok, 62. The two-term prime minister, who had become a familiar and respected figure both in Dutch and European politics, announced last year that he would step down as party leader and not run again.
But his party's limp finish still seemed a poor reward for the decade in which he helped turn the Netherlands into one of the best-performing economies in Europe, with rapid growth and one of the lowest unemployment rates.
Among the most common complaints was that the Dutch had become bored and even angry with the cozy world of consensus politics. The left-center-right coalition had made for stable politics, but also for endless back room dealing in which real political debate was stifled. As a result, the government was seen as a tight circle of managers too distant from people's daily concerns.
"This is a wake-up call that affects all of us," said Maria van der Hoeven, deputy leader of the Christian Democrats. "People are telling us, do something about our problems, about the lack of safety in the streets, about the problems in the schools and the hospitals."
At the chic Hotel des Indes, where List Fortuyn supporters awaited results, the strange nature of this election was palpable. Party faithful cheered as their huge success became known, but many were dressed in black mourning clothes.
Hovering above the crowd was an enormous portrait of the party's slain founder, whom leftist political opponents and news outlets had called a racist, a fascist and worse before he was gunned down.
"I'm very moved that we are celebrating this without Pim," said Ferry Hoogendijk, one of his followers who won a seat. "This was his work. He created this party practically single-handedly in less than three months."