European elections 2019: Dutch workers celebrate after the vote

The Dutch center-left Labor Party is toasting an "unexpected comeback" in Thursday's European elections.

The results will not be known until the end of Sunday, as the rest of the EU, but the Dutch Labor Party celebrates what it claims to be a victory based on exit polls.

These exit soundings are not necessarily an accurate indication of the outcome.

Under UK law, the BBC can not publish polls at the end of elections to the European Parliament.

British voters also went to the polls on Thursday and the vote took place on Friday in Ireland and the Czech Republic.

The majority of EU countries will vote Sunday and the latest campaign events took place Friday on the continent.

But in the Netherlands, Friday, the headlines were only about the return of a center-left party that had fallen in national elections from 38 to 9 seats in Parliament.

European elections 2019

• May 23: The Netherlands, United Kingdom
• May 24: Ireland, Czech Republic (who also voted May 25)
• May 25: Latvia, Malta, Slovakia
• May 26: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden

• How the BBC reports polling day
• How does the vote in the European elections work?

The high praise went mainly to the main candidate, Frans Timmermans, Vice-President of the European Commission, who was trying to replace Jean-Claude Juncker in the leading position in Brussels.

Lodewijk Asscher, leader of the Labor Party (PvdA), hailed a "strange return", tweeting: "So proud [Frans Timmermans] and all the work in the country. So grateful for the trust of so many people. "

Before the vote, all eyes were on Liberal Prime Minister Mark Rutte and right-wing populist leader Thierry Baudet, who had taken part in a separate televised debate on the eve of the vote. Mr. Baudet won the local elections in March and insisted that Thursday's vote be successful.

Timmermans has campaigned extensively in recent weeks as part of his campaign for the presidency of the European Commission, but he is not universally popular across Europe.

He has angered the ruling Social Democrats (PSD) in Romania after accusing them of opposing the anti-corruption measures demanded by the European Commission.

The PSD has released a cheerful campaign song performed by children and titled: "Green Pumpkin Leaf / I Do not Want Timmermans / A Partial Man / From the Land of Tulips."