> In particular, Netherlands is a fascinating example because they use a single, nationwide constituency for parliamentary election

This is not true (except for European Parliament elections).

The Netherlands has [twenty electoral districts](https://www.kiesraad.nl/verkiezingen/tweede-kamer/kandidaatstelling/kieskringen):

[![enter image description here][1]][1]  
*Source: [kiesraad](https://www.kiesraad.nl/verkiezingen/tweede-kamer/kandidaatstelling/kieskringen)*

Political parties may decide to have the same candidates in all districts, or to have different candidates in different districts.  These days, most parties have the same candidates for the top positions on the list, but then vary the lists further down.  They may put a so-called *lijstduwer* lower down on the list.  A *lijstduwer* (literally *[electoral] list pusher*) is often a (locally) known person who is sympathetic to the cause of the party.  They may not actually intend to take a seat if elected, but their votes still count toward the total party-list votes.  The term is derived from *lijsttrekker* (literally *list puller*), which is a Dutch term for the national top candidate of the party list.

Some parties participate only in a subset of districts, usually because they haven't met the requirement to gather enough signatures for participation, a requirement that applies per district.  Usually those are minor parties with little chance of reaching the 0.67% electoral threshold.

If they wish, parties can have completely different candidates in different electoral districts.  They rarely do, because they see it as more successful to put nationally well-known figures near the top of the list everywhere.  Even in a small town in the countryside, more people have heard of the top national candidates than of the backbencher who happens to be from the same town.

Parties may choose to have candidates from different parts of the country if they think this is in their electoral interest.  This is an internal party matter.  However, The Netherlands is a small country, and in the European part of The Netherlands, everyone lives close to everybody else.  Therefore, regional representation is not as hot of an issue as it is in more geographically spread out countries, although rural-urban or periphery-central divides do play a role in Dutch politics too.


  [1]: https://i.sstatic.net/xb6Pl.png