  A search for supersymmetric particles produced in the vector boson fusion
topology in proton-proton collisions is presented. The search targets final
states with one or zero leptons, large missing transverse momentum, and two
jets with a large separation in rapidity. The data sample corresponds to an
integrated luminosity of 35.9 fb$^{-1}$ of proton-proton collisions at
$\sqrt{s} =$ 13 TeV collected in 2016 with the CMS detector at the LHC. The
observed dijet invariant mass and lepton-neutrino transverse mass spectra are
found to be consistent with the standard model predictions. Upper limits are
set on the cross sections for chargino ($\widetilde\chi_1^\pm$) and neutralino
($\widetilde\chi_2^0$) production with two associated jets. For a compressed
mass spectrum scenario in which the $\widetilde\chi_1^\pm$ and
$\widetilde\chi_2^0$ decays proceed via a light slepton and the mass difference
between the lightest neutralino $\widetilde\chi_1^0$ and the mass-degenerate
particles $\widetilde\chi_1^\pm$ and $\widetilde\chi_2^0$ is 1 (30) GeV, the
most stringent lower limit to date of 112 (215) GeV is set on the mass of these
latter two particles.
