The fact that Belgian greens parties, Ecolo and Groen, are disappearing from the local governments in the City of Brussels and Ixelles – two strategically important municipalities in the Capital Region – will likely further complicate the already complex Brussels Government negotiations.
The Greens have focused strongly on mobility measures – such as Good Move – in the past legislature, which the MR has fiercely criticised. The fact that the PS, together with Vooruit, is now choosing to bypass them and embrace the MR is met with incomprehension by Groen co-leader Nadia Naji.
"The fact that PS-Vooruit is throwing out the greens without mercy in municipalities where we score well, such as in Ixelles and the City of Brussels, is a clear signal for the formation: they do not want us there," Naji told Bruzz.
"The majority in the City of Brussels and Ixelles voted left-progressive, but is being left out in the cold by PS-Vooruit. This stab in the back is making possible discussions to form a government at the regional level even more difficult," she added.
Groen's Nadia Naji. Credit: Belga/Nicolas Maeterlinck
With the municipal elections out of the way, the formation talks for the formation of a new Brussels Government will start again this week – although it is still unclear who will take the lead after the negotiations abruptly stopped in September.
Dutch-speaking formator Elke Van den Brandt (Groen) threw in the towel after the French-speaking parties PS, MR and Les Engagés put a proposal to Parliament to postpone the next phase of the low-emission zone (LEZ) by two years, without consulting her. After a menacing tweet from MR leader Georges-Louis Bouchez, who had announced that he would end Good Move in Parliament, Van den Brandt pulled the plug.
Then, Fouad Ahidar (whose party Team Fouad Ahidar finished second on the Dutch-speaking list in the June elections) took over the torch, but could not convince Vooruit and Groen. Particularly Vooruit are hoping that Van den Brandt will pick up the talks again. However, that seems less likely due to the developments in the City of Brussels and Ixelles.
"A coalition with us was not even considered in the City of Brussels and Ixelles, but they switched to a centre-right axis as quickly as possible," a source from the Groen party told the news outlet. "The anger towards the socialists is enormous."
On social media, the mayor of Evere Ridouane Chahid (PS) said that it was "funny" to read the comments of the greens on alliances, as he said the ecologists had also negotiated an alliance to overthrow the PS in some municipalities, including Evere.
Difficult cards
In any case, the cards did not fall favourably for the greens participating in ruling coalitions, especially not in the City of Brussels. Due to the loss of Ecolo-Groen (who were down 13.02%) and the decline of DéFI, a continuation of the previous coalition was ruled out.
Meanwhile, a progressive coalition with mayor Philippe Close's PS-Vooruit list, Ecolo-Groen and PTB-PVDA in the capital is so unlikely to happen that the suggestion has been called "political science fiction" by commentators, as MR and Les Engagés had tied their fates together.
In Ixelles, however, the situation is completely different: the list of incumbent mayor Christos Doulkeridis (Ecolo) received the most votes, but was pushed aside by PS-Vooruit, MR-VLD and Les Engagés-Objectif XL.
Doulkeridis said he has "no regrets" about not having given in to "political games," and that he is leaving with his dignity intact. "There’s another side to politics – those petty games that disgust people. I have always practised politics with authenticity, upholding values and a vision I have always defended. I never wanted to engage in a struggle for positions."
