Belgium: Political Developments and Data in 2024

Abstract In 2024, Belgium experienced its third consecutive ‘Mother of all elections’. Federal, regional and European elections were held on 9 June and local elections on 13 October. These elections profoundly transformed Belgium's political landscape: the right and center, with Reformist Movement/ Mouvement réformateur ( MR) and Les Engagés, took the lead in Wallonia, putting an end to Socialist domination. In Flanders, New Flemish Alliance/ Nieuw-Vlaamse Alliantie (N-VA) maintained its position as the leading party despite the rise of Vlaams Belang, while the ecologists suffered a net decline in all regions. In Brussels, the Socialist Party remained in the lead, but the MR made significant gains. This led to the creation of unedited coalitions: the ‘Arizona’ federal government (N-VA, MR, Vooruit, Christian Democratic and Flemish/ Christen-Democratisch en Vlaam s [CD&V], Les Engagés)—yet not already formed by the end of 2024, the ‘Azur’ coalition in Wallonia (MR–Les Engagés) and a tripartite in Flanders (N-VA, Vooruit, CD&V), reflecting a profound restructuring of federal and regional executive power.