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: Jean-Paul Van Laethem (Les Engagés)
Current coalition: Liste du Bourgmestre, MR, DéFI
Number of seats on the council: 27
Population: 25,564 (Statbel)
Average income: €14,031 (Statbel)
Average cost of housing: The average price for a flat is €2,766/m2, while the average cost for a house is €2,696/m2 (Immoweb)
2. DéFI
Lead candidate: Grégory Rase (DéFI)
Number of candidates on the list: 29
Security: strengthen surveillance camera network, enhance connection between the police and the general public through prioritising patrols on foot, bikes or horseback, fine incivilities, improve street lighting.
Cleanliness: increase the number of public 'dog toilets', prevent waste production by promoting use of reusable containers, organise a second weekly rubbish bag collection, build more public toilets.
Social welfare: promote projects such as home care or social grocery shopping, create a municipal 'one-stop shop' for services tailored to young people, make emergency and transit accommodation available to social services when necessary, promote integration of people with disabilities, support initiatives to welcome unaccompanied foreign minors.
Education: focus on meeting targets of availability of places in childcare facilities, develop inclusion projects for children, encourage voluntary work at school through financial or travel compensations, encourage language immersion, make canteens healthier and more sustainable, support policy to prevent substance addiction.
Full list programme here.
3. Liste du Bourgmestre
Lead candidate: Jean-Paul Van Laethem (Les Engagés)
Number of candidates on the list: 29
Cleanliness: zero tolerance for illegal dumping, reinforce cleaning service, optimise location of public bins, reassess use of surveillance cameras for identifying illegal dumping, extend the network of cleaners.
Security: strengthen municipal police force and increase number of peacekeepers, increase collaboration between local residents and police, improve surveillance camera networks and street lighting, tackle drug consumption and trafficking, simplify administrative procedures, combat dubious commercial activity.
Finances: offer information sessions with locals about the municipal budget, maintain personal income tax and property tax at the current level, seek grants and respond to calls for new projects, create partnerships to reduce local expenditure.
Mobility: improve accessibility of public spaces and public transport for people with reduced mobility, finalise a new communal mobility plan, improve signage and infrastructure for pedestrians and bicycles, develop a 'bike library' where parents can borrow bikes for their children, reserve parking spots for professionals such as doctors or police vehicles.
Full list programme here.
4. Ecolo-Groen
Lead candidate: Marie Fontaine (Ecolo)
Number of candidates on the list: 29
Environment and cleanliness: plant trees and redevelop communal green spaces, grant permits to encourage development of green citizen projects, pesticide-free green spaces around schools and neighbourhoods, create a regional recycling centre, step up surveillance and punishment of illegal dumping, combat noise pollution.
Youth: encourage participation of youth in daily local life by supporting youth lead projects, facilitate access to sports and cultural activities, make green spaces social places, encourage connection between different generations.
Mobility: improve pavements to make them more accessible to those with reduced mobility, make local squares and shops more accessible, improve safety around schools, promote sustainable mobility, improve public transport routes.
Security: tackle drug trafficking by increasing police patrols and surveillance operations, organise regular meetings between security services and citizens to discuss local issues, tackle street harassment by raising awareness, collaborate with the local police to improve reception of victims.
Full list programme here.
8. PS - Citoyens
Lead candidate: Karima Souiss (PS)
Number of candidates on the list: 29
Cleanliness: collect orange bin bags twice a week, combat illegal dumping using surveillance cameras and more severe punishments for repeated offences, change dog bin bags more often.
Security: increase neighbourhood police officers and patrols, raise awareness of scams, strengthen reception of victims, address laughing gas issues, consult locals to identify unsafe zones.
Mobility: road safety awareness projects, consult local residents in mobility plans, assess pavements conditions, improve bicycle lanes and frequency and accessibility of public transport with STIB, strengthen shared and 'soft mobility' options, make mobility inclusive for those with reduced mobility, reduce residential parking tariffs.
Well-being: invest in and diversify municipal (extra-curricular) activities, increase daycare and nursery places, modernise and expand infrastructure for events, studying, workshops and sports, develop at home services to help senior citizens.
Full list programme here.
6. Open MR
Lead candidate: Stéphane Obeid (MR)
Number of candidates on the list: 29
Security: increase police presence and number of officers, awareness campaigns about penalties for offences and the role of the police and peacekeepers, increase use of surveillance cameras, encourage businesses to install Telepolice systems.
Cleanliness: use surveillance cameras to combat illegal dumping, increase the number of cleaners, invest in better equipment, zero tolerance for littering, raise awareness and increase citizen involvement.
Mobility: improve pavements and infrastructures for pedestrians and cyclists, combat traffic violations, keep parking rules similar to neighbouring municipalities and ensure residents' parking tariffs are kept at an "acceptable" price, set up 'transport-on-demand' service for those with reduced mobility.
Business: define a municipal commercial and development plan to strengthen local commerce, distribute 'local business vouchers' to encourage local consumption, grant start-up bonuses.
Full list programme here.
9. N-VA
Lead candidate: Karl Vanlouwe (N-VA)
Number of candidates on the list: 7
Security: zero tolerance policy for violence against emergency service workers, increase neighbourhood officers, encourage citizen involvement by developing neighbourhood information networks, carry out 'integrity investigations' to identify dubious commerce, combat youth gangs and drug dealers, extend list of offences subject to administrative fines.
Language: ensure language legislation is enforced, require bilingual police and fire services to support citizens in their own language, stricter control over bilingualism bonuses paid to civil servants.
Cleanliness: mobilise teams to combat illegal dumping and graffiti, opt for underground rubbish containers instead of door-to-door collection, increase civic awareness through campaigns, install cameras to identify illegal dumping.
Mobility: prioritise safety when developing new infrastructure and enforcing rules, create clear bicycle lanes, address speeding by installing speed bumps, improve accessibility and safety of pavements.
Full list programme here.
