Belgium's 2024 local elections are around the corner. Brussels residents will vote to elect their local council on Sunday 13 October, and indirectly, their new mayor (bourgmestre in French or burgemeester in Dutch).
Knowing how the local election list system works is key to understanding who is running. Find all you need to know about lists here. Our practical guide will tell you everything you need to know before the big day.
Some numbers below are missing. This is because there are a total of 13 lists in Brussels, but not every list appears in every commune.
Current mayor: Christian Lamouline (Les Engagés)
Current coalition: Liste du Bourgmestre, PS-Vooruit, Ecolo-Groen
Number of seats on the council: 27
Population: 25,787 (Statbel)
Average income: €16,790 (Statbel)
Average cost of housing: The average cost for a flat is €2,720/m², while the average cost for a house is €2,576/m² (Immoweb)
1. PS-Vooruit+
Lead candidate: Yonnec Polet (PS)
Number of candidates on the list: 29
Unemployment and local economy: develop jobs in the Cité Moderne neighbourhood through the work@berchem non-profit, reintegrate people who are far removed from the labour market, support shopkeepers and new businesses, festivities, markets and flea markets on Place Schweitzer and Parvis de l'Église.
Cleanliness: review the management of rubbish bins (in particular orange bags) in dialogue with the Capital Region, step up the number of collections, combat illegal dumping and littering with penalties, organise a biannual Clean-up Day awareness-raising event with the participation of volunteers.
Mobility: improve accessibility and transport infrastructure in Brussels (such as the metro extension to Berchem) as part of the future redevelopment of the station district, create underground parking and parking spaces for shops and residents.
Full list programme here.
2. DéFI
Lead candidate: Lore De Leener
Number of candidates on the list: 29
Cleanliness: cleaner streets through underground containers for more efficient waste management, better-sanctioned illegal dumping, and public and accessible toilets.
Security: combat crime such as theft, burglaries and street harassment with a network of cameras in the municipalities, starting with the neighbourhoods most affected by street crime.
Mobility: Banning cars without any credible alternative is not realistic, and municipalities should have the final say in the definition and implementation of mobility plans.
Full list programme here.
3. Liste du Bourgmestre
Lead candidate: Christian Lamouline (Les Engagés)
Number of candidates on the list: 29
Cleanliness and public space: create a regional recycling centre, renovate roads and footpaths, implement an ambitious tree planting plan, create new green spaces and safe cycle paths, open a permanent guinguette and chip shop or waffle kiosk.
Security: strengthen 'proximity policing' and police presence on the ground, expand the network of public surveillance cameras, increase the team of community guards and expand their powers to issue fines, redesign streets and/or install physical measures to reduce speeding.
Mobility: reduce noise pollution and improving the traffic flow on the Chaussée de Gand, Avenue du Roi Albert and Place Schweitzer, optimise on-street parking capacity, create a new underground car park at Place Schweitzer, increase number of electric recharging points and number of bicycle boxes and lockers, improve rail, tram and metro services to the station area.
Full list programme here.
4. Ecolo-Groen
Lead candidate: Thibault Wauthier (Ecolo)
Number of candidates on the list: 29
Mobility: renovate squares and streets to make it easier and safer to get around on foot and by bike, strengthen public transport services (particularly in the evenings and at weekends), provide better connections from the station area to the Brussels network, encourage car-sharing schemes, including private car-sharing.
Climate: implement the municipal Climate Plan, organise thematic awareness-raising actions, promote biodiversity and environmental conservation at the local level, promote clean, accessible energy through energy-sharing communities and supporting residents' energy renovations of their homes.
Security: increase the presence of peacekeepers and street workers throughout the municipality, as well as the visibility of local 'soft policing', step up checks to ensure compliance with the highway code (particularly for speeding and illegal parking), developing support services for victims and favour mediation and preventive measures rather than repressive approaches.
Cleanliness: intensify patrols to detect and punish illegal dumping and impose dissuasive fines to deter irresponsible behaviour, create a network of volunteers to raise awareness and organise community clean-up actions, speed up waste management projects such as the rapid opening of the container park and recycling centre.
Full list programme here.
6. Open MR
Lead candidate: Geoffrey Van Hecke (MR)
Number of candidates on the list: 29
Cleanliness and public space: fight against pests, increase penalties for illegal dumping and make concrete areas greener.
Security: more surveillance cameras, zero tolerance of crime and anti-social behaviour through strict actions, and a local police force present on the ground.
Mobility: reject Good Move mobility plan, develop a public-private partnership to build an underground car park at Place Roi Baudouin and develop and extend the metro.
Full list programme here.
9. N-VA
Lead candidate: Regine Heijvaert
Number of candidates on the list: 14
Security: make local police more approachable and accessible, introduce a zero tolerance policy for violence against police and emergency services, involve citizens in security policy via neighbourhood information networks, counter the formation of street gangs and intervening as early and decisively as possible.
Cleanliness: review rubbish collection and install underground containers, organise thematic lessons on waste policy and the functioning of the cleaning services in cooperation with primary and secondary schools, create a surveillance plan to identify problem areas and install cameras to identify offenders.
Mobility: map the neighbourhoods most frequently affected by street racing and install speed bumps or narrow roads to make it impossible to drive excessively fast, activate points that register excessively loud engines, fewer parking spaces in public spaces but compensate as much as possible by creating new parking spaces off public roads.
Full list programme here.
14. Be Berchem
Lead candidate: Nathalie Mayor (Independent)
Number of candidates on the list: 28
Cleanliness: develop a communication campaign to make everyone's responsibility clear to combat littering and illegal dumping and anti-social behaviour.
Housing: create affordable shared housing and establish an info-service that compiles information on people looking for housing, defines selection criteria and maps municipal housing.
Security: increase police presence on the streets at night for less nuisance, less crime and a greater sense of security.
Full list programme here.
