Belgian Elections 2024

Brussels negotiators meet again but without Open VLD

Open VLD, which reiterated in the morning that it would not join a coalition without N-VA, was notably absent.

Wednesday 26 March 2025

Fighting over Brussels: Where will it end?

"I promised myself never to go into politics. But after a while I found myself becoming cynical and decided I should try to change things." Frédéric De Gucht now is kingmaker.

Wednesday 26 March 2025

Technical, crisis or minority government: How to break the Brussels deadlock

"Brussels residents rightly expect a government. Failure to meet this demand risks increasing anger and distrust towards the political world."

Monday 10 March 2025

Brussels Government talks fail: What happens next?

Leisterh had given himself until Friday to untangle the complicated knot of party politics, vetoes and linguistic balance in Brussels, but did not succeed.

Saturday 22 February 2025

Brussels Government deadlock: N-VA 'too small' for coalition, says PS

"The party is the big loser of the regional elections. There are other solutions."

Wednesday 19 February 2025

Saint-Josse re-election: Emir Kir's list wins again with absolute majority

Outgoing mayor Emir Kir and his Liste du Bourgmestre (LB) won the local elections again. The results of the 13 October elections were overturned.

Sunday 9 February 2025

Belgium's new Federal Government - behind the scenes

What have the first few days of the new Belgian Government looked like in photos?

Wednesday 5 February 2025

PM De Wever warns Belgium's 'road ahead is no walk in park' in first speech

De Wever focused on the efforts that will be required to put Belgium in order, an exercise that "will take longer than one legislature."

Tuesday 4 February 2025

Belgian MEP appointed interim leader of Les Engagés

"Les Engagés played a key role in this episode, and believe me, we expect to continue to make an impact in the future."

Tuesday 4 February 2025

New female minister in favour of women quotas in Federal Government

One of Belgium's new ministers, Vanessa Matz (Les Engagés), "does not agree" with the reduced presence of four women for 11 men in the new Federal Government.

Tuesday 4 February 2025

New Belgian Government settles in: What's on the agenda this week?

This week, the new Federal Government is taking the last official hurdles before it can really get to work.

Tuesday 4 February 2025

Belgian equality and anti-Racism body 'outraged' at 25% budget cut

"We strongly disagree with this decision, especially as the current context only increases tensions, polarisation, discrimination and hate speech and crimes."

Monday 3 February 2025

Bouchez to focus on Brussels formation talks now Federal Government is formed

Georges-Louis Bouchez will not become a minister despite being a key player in Federal Government talks. Instead, he will turn his attention to Brussels.

Monday 3 February 2025

'An honour to be Prime Minister': De Croo passes baton to De Wever

De Croo congratulated his successor and gifted him a Lonely Planet guide and a book with one of the first-ever references to Belgium.

Monday 3 February 2025

Who's in Belgium's new Federal Government?

Here is an overview of the new ministers and their powers.

Monday 3 February 2025

New Belgian Government: MR's Bouchez will not become a minister after all

Bouchez does not want to "abandon his liberal family," he said.

Monday 3 February 2025

What does Arizona mean for Brussels?

The "Arizona" coalition's overarching mission is to stabilise Belgium's finances. But what could this drive for efficiency mean for Brussels?

Monday 3 February 2025

Who's taking the top jobs? First federal ministers announced

Whilst there was little doubt that Bart De Wever would become Belgium's next premier, allocating the key ministerial jobs requires further negotiations.

Sunday 2 February 2025

Arizona is born: Reactions and policy plans of Belgium's next Federal Government

Tensions were high throughout the week, with doubts circulating about whether the parties would reach an agreement or if it would be impossible to find common ground. They managed. Just.

Sunday 2 February 2025

Security, healthcare, migration, mobility: Headline policies of the next Federal Government

The first priority for the new government will be to balance the budget. Without changes in policy, Belgium's deficit could become the highest in Europe.

Saturday 1 February 2025