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Belgium

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Last reviewed: 15 April 2009

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POLITICS

Political Background

Article 1 of the Belgian constitution states that there are 3 language communities: Flemish (in the north) and Francophone (in the south), split roughly 60%/40%, and a small German-speaking community (70,000) in the south-east. There are also 3 administrative regions: Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels. There are 10 provinces and almost 600 local authorities. Successive reforms have transferred certain powers to the regions and communities, leaving the Federal Government responsible only for some major issues like defence, foreign affairs, justice, the national budget, including setting and collecting most taxes, and social security. Responsibility for education and culture rests with the communities, while the regions' responsibilities include environment, transport, energy, agriculture and public works. Some issues are divided between the different levels, eg health. Regional and community governments are entirely autonomous and their ministers have equal status with federal ones. Their powers are not therefore devolved as in the UK model.

Federal elections are held every 4 years; regional and community elections every five years and local elections every 6 years. Voting is compulsory at all levels. All the major political parties split along linguistic lines in the 1970s. No party presents candidates across the country as a whole.

2007 Federal Elections

Federal elections were held in Belgium on 10 June 2007. After a period of opposition, the Flemish Christian Democrats emerged as the winners, with both linguistic groups indicating a preference for Centre-Right parties. Both Socialist Parties made significant losses. The Flemish Greens also returned to the Parliament after being ejected in 2003. After a period of sustained growth, the progress of the far-right Vlaams Belang party was halted, although they retained the third highest number of Flemish MPs.

Following the elections, the 4 Christian Democrat and Liberal parties (2 from each linguistic group) began negotiations to form the next government in early July. However, by December they had still not reached a final agreement, mainly due to differences between the parties across the language barrier on issues mainly relating to further transfer of powers from the federal government to the regions, and language and voting rights around Brussels.

As a result, the King asked the outgoing Prime Minister, Guy Verhofstadt, to form an Interim Government to allow negotiations to continue without further effect on the governance of the country. Verhofstadt’s new coalition of both Liberal parties, the Flemish Christian Democrats, the Francophone Centre Democrats and Francophone Socialists was sworn in on 20 December. This Interim Government had  a mandate only until Easter 2008, after which Flemish Christian Democrat leader Yves Leterme, became  Prime Minister with a new government coalition. In December 2008, a government crisis over a separation of powers' issue caused the government to fall and PM Leterme to resign.  The present government coalition was continued under a new PM of the same party Herman Van Rompuy. 

2004 Regional Elections

Elections in the 3 regions of Flanders, Brussels-Capital (divided in to Flemish and Francophone groups) and Wallonia took place on 13 June 2004. The results were a strong protest vote against the then incumbent Liberal/Socialist federal governmentIn Wallonia, and the Francophone group of the Brussels Capital region, the Socialists (PS) , pushed the Francophone Liberals (MR) and Christian Democrats (CDH) into second and third place respectively. The MR is now outside regional government in Wallonia and Brussels, with the PS choosing to form a coalition with the CDH. In Flanders the Christian Democrats became the leading party in the Flemish regional government, which is currently a coalition of Christian Democrats, Liberals and Socialists.

The most notable result was for the far-right Vlaams Blok (VB), which increased its share of the vote from 15% (1999 regional elections) to 24%, making them the largest single Party in Flanders, and from 31% to 34% in the Flemish group of the Brussels Capital region. (They remain excluded from active government by a 'cordon sanitaire'; the party was re-launched in November 2004 as Vlaams Belang (Flemish Interest) following a Belgian court ruling that the Vlaams Blok was a racist party).

Next elections:

  • Federal level -by June 2011
  • Regional level (Flanders, Wallonia, Brussels) - June 2009

More information: Belgium election details

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