The Middle Party for City and Country (in Dutch: Middenpartij voor Stad en Land, MPSL) was a Dutch

Politics of the Netherlands

The politics of the Netherlands take place within the framework of a parliamentary representative democracy, a constitutional monarchy and a decentralised unitary state. The Netherlands is described as a consociational state...

 political party

Political party

A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...

 defending the interests of the middle class

Middle class

The middle class is any class of people in the middle of a societal hierarchy. In Weberian socio-economic terms, the middle class is the broad group of people in contemporary society who fall socio-economically between the working class and upper class....

. The Middle Party played only a marginal role in Dutch politics.

Party history

The party was founded by Abraham Staalman who had previously been member of the liberal Liberal State Party

Liberal State Party

The Liberal State Party, "the Freedom League" , was a Dutch conservative liberal political party from 1921 to 1948...

 (LSP) after his own Middle Class Party

Middle Class Party

The Middenstandspartij was a Dutch political party representing middle class interests. It played only a marginal role in Dutch politics.-Party History:...

 had merged into that. Before the elections of 1929 Staalman had founded his own party and had left the LSP parliamentary party.

The Middle Party entered in the 1929 elections

Dutch general election, 1929

A general election of the House of Representatives of the Dutch Parliament was held in the Netherlands on July 3, 1929.-National summary:-Parties:* Anti Revolutionary Party * Agrarians' League...

, who held a personality-based campaign around the Bussum

Bussum

Bussum is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland.-History:Bussum was first mentioned in 1306. In this time, Bussum was a large heathland with many small farms, sheep pens and forests as is shown on old maps. Since Bussum is situated near the fortified town...

 milk industrial and anti-toll campaigner Floris Vos. The Middle Party was able to win one seat in the House of Representatives. The party played a marginal role in parliament. Vos came into conflict with Staalman over his support for a law on mandatory closing times for shops. The party consequently fell apart in parties around Staalman and Vos, who fought legal battles over the ownership of the party's name. Neither party entered in the 1933 election

Dutch general election, 1933

A general election of the House of Representatives of the Dutch Parliament was held in the Netherlands on April 26, 1933.-National summary:-Parties:* Anti Revolutionary Party...

.

Ideology and issues

The party wanted to increase public wealth by reducing the restrictions for trade, industry and agriculture. The most important issues of the Middle Party were the abolition of trade restriction, especially toll roads, import tariffs and several levies. The party wanted to reduce government expenditure by reducing the number of civil servants and the replacement of unemployment benefit

Unemployment benefit

Unemployment benefits are payments made by the state or other authorized bodies to unemployed people. Benefits may be based on a compulsory para-governmental insurance system...

s by public works

Public works

Public works are a broad category of projects, financed and constructed by the government, for recreational, employment, and health and safety uses in the greater community...

 programs.

Leadership and support

This table shows the Middle Party's results in elections to the House of Representatives and Senate, as well as the party's political leadership: the fractievoorzitter, is the chair of the parliamentary party and the lijsttrekker is the party's top candidate in the general election, these posts are normally taken by the party's leader.

Year	HoR	S	Lijsttrekker Lijsttrekker Lijsttrekker is a Dutch term for the top candidate of a party on a party list. He or she is almost always the party's political leader. After an election, this person usually leads the party's faction in the States-General, or serves in a senior position in the Cabinet if his party is part of...	Fractievoorzitter
1929 Dutch general election, 1929 A general election of the House of Representatives of the Dutch Parliament was held in the Netherlands on July 3, 1929.-National summary:-Parties:* Anti Revolutionary Party * Agrarians' League...	1	0	Floris Vos	Floris Vos
1930	1	0	no elections	Floris Vos
1931	1	0	no elections	Floris Vos
1932	1	0	no elections	Floris Vos

Electorate

The electorate of the Middle Party was concentrated in Amsterdam

Amsterdam

Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...

 and 't Gooi, a region around Hilversum

Hilversum

is a municipality and a town in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. Located in the region called "'t Gooi", it is the largest town in that area. It is surrounded by heathland, woods, meadows, lakes, and smaller villages...

, where Vos came from. The party drew its main support from farmers and the middle class.