Government & politics — Belgium

• history: drafted 25 November 1830, approved 7 February 1831, entered into force 26 July 1831,
• revised 14 July 1993 (creating a federal state) amendments: "revisions" proposed as declarations by the federal government in accord with the king or by Parliament followed by dissolution of Parliament and new elections; adoption requires two-thirds majority vote of a two-thirds quorum in both houses of the next elected Parliament; amended many times, last in 2019

• civil law system based on the French Civil Code
• note - Belgian law continues to be modified in conformance with the legislative norms mandated by the European Union
• judicial review of legislative acts

• Prime Minister Bart DE WEVER (since 3 February 2025) cabinet: Council of Ministers f
• ormally appointed by the monarch election/appointment process: the monarchy is hereditary and constitutional; following legislative elections, the monarch usually appoints the leader of the majority party or majority coalition as prime minister, which the legislature approves

Description

bicameral Parliament consists of: Senate or Senaat (in Dutch), Senat (in French) (60 seats; 50 members indirectly elected by the community and regional parliaments based on their election results, and 10 elected by the 50 other senators; members serve 5-year terms) Chamber of Representatives or Kamer van Volksvertegenwoordigers (in Dutch), Chambre des Representants (in French) (150 seats; members directly elected in multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms)

Elections

• Senate - last held 26 May 2019 (next to be held on 31 July 2024) Chamber of Representatives - last held on 26 May 2019 (next to be held on 31 May 2024);

Note

elections coincided with the EU elections

Election Results

• - Senate - percent of vote by party - N-VA 15%, VB 12%, PS 12%, MR 12%, CD&V 8.3%, Open VLD 8.3%, Ecolo 15%, SP.A 6.7%, CDH 3.3%, PVDA-PTB 8.3%
• seats by party - N-VA 9, VB 7, PS 7, MR 7, CD&V 5, Open VLD 5, Ecolo 9, SP.A 4, CDH 2, PVDA-PTB 5
• composition as of January 2024 - men 34, women 26, percent of women 43.3% Chamber of Representatives - percent of vote by party - N-VA 16.7%, VB 12%, PS 13.3%, CD&V 8%, PVDA-PTB 8%, Open VLD 8%, MR 9.3%, SP.A 6%, Ecolo 8.7%, Green 5.3%, CDH 3.3%, Defi 1.3%
• seats by party - N-VA 25, VB 18, PS 20, CD&V 12, PVDA+PTB 12, Open VLD 12, MR 14, SP.A 9, Ecolo 13, Green 8, CDH 5, Defi 2
• composition as of August 2023 - men 86, women 64, percent of women 42.7%;

Note

total Parliament percent of women 42.9%

Note

• the 1993 constitutional revision that further devolved Belgium into a federal state created three levels of government (federal, regional, and linguistic community) with a complex division of responsibilities
• this reality leaves six governments, each with its own legislative assembly
• changes above occurred since the sixth state reform

• highest court(s): Constitutional Court or Grondwettelijk Hof (in Dutch) and Cour Constitutionelle (in French) (consists of 12 judges - 6 Dutch-speaking and 6 French-speaking); Supreme Court of Justice or Hof van Cassatie (in Dutch) and C
• our de Cassation (in French) (court organized into 3 chambers: civil and commercial; criminal; social, fiscal, and armed forces; each chamber includes a Dutch division and a French division, each with a c
• hairperson and 5-6 judges) judge selection and term of office: Constitutional Court judges appointed by the monarch from candidates submitted by Parliament; judges appointed for life with mandatory retirement at age 70; Supreme Court judges appointed by the monarch from candidates submitted by the High Council of Justice, a 44-member independent body of judicial and non-judicial members;
• judges appointed for life subordinate courts: Courts of Appeal; regional courts; specialized courts for administrative, commercial, labor, immigration, and audit issues; magistrate's courts; justices of the peace

Summary

3 regions (French: regions, singular - region; Dutch: gewesten, singular - gewest) Brussels-Capital Region, also known as Brussels Hoofdstedelijk Gewest (Dutch), Region de Bruxelles-Capitale (French long form), Bruxelles-Capitale (French short form); Flemish Region (Flanders), also known as Vlaams Gewest (Dutch long form), Vlaanderen (Dutch short form), Region Flamande (French long form), Flandre (French short form); Walloon Region (Wallonia), also known as Region Wallone (French long form), Wallonie (French short form), Waals Gewest (Dutch long form), Wallonie (Dutch short form) note: as a result of the 1993 constitutional revision that furthered devolution into a federal state

Regions or States

• there are now three levels of government (federal
• regional
• and linguistic community) with a complex division of responsibilities; the 2012 sixth state reform transferred additional competencies from the federal state to the regions and linguistic communities

• Flemish parties: Christian Democratic and Flemish or CD&V [Sammy MAHDI]
• Forward [Melissa DEPRAETERE] (formerly Social Progressive Alternative or SP.A)
• Groen or Green [Nadia NAJI and Jeremie VANEECKHOUT] (formerly AGALEV, Flemish Greens)
• New Flemish Alliance or N-VA [Bart DE WEVER]
• Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats or Open VLD [Egbert LACHAERT]
• Vlaams Belang (Flemish Interest) or VB [Tom VAN GRIEKEN]
• Francophone parties: Ecolo (Francophone Greens) [Jean-Marc NOLLET and Rajae MAOUANE]
• Francophone Federalist Democrats or Defi [Francois DE SMET]
• Les Engages [Maxime PREVOT] (formerly Humanist and Democratic Center or CDH)
• Reform Movement or MR [George-Louis BOUCHEZ]
• Socialist Party or PS [Paul MAGNETTE]
• Workers' Party or PVDA-PTB [Raoul HEDEBOUW]

• no citizenship by descent only: at least one pa
• yes residency requirement for naturalization: 5 years

ADB (nonregional members), AfDB (nonregional members), Australia Group, Benelux, BIS, CD, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECB, EIB, EITI (implementing country), EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, FATF, G-9, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD (partners), IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), MIGA, MONUSCO, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF, OPCW, OSCE, Pacific Alliance (observer), Paris Club, PCA, Schengen Convention, SELEC (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNRWA, UNTSO, UPU, Wassenaar Arrangement, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

chief of mission

Ambassador Michael ADLER (since 15 March 2022) embassy: 27 Boulevard du Regent [Regentlaan], B-1000 Brussels mailing address: 7600 Brussels Place, Washington DC 20521-7600

telephone

[32] (2) 811-4000

FAX

[32] (2) 811-4500

Email address and website

• uscitizenBrussels@state.gov
• https://be.usembassy.gov/

chief of mission

Ambassador Jean-Arthur REGIBEAU (since 17 September 2020)

chancery

1430 K Street NW, Washington DC 20005

telephone

[1] (202) 333-6900

FAX

[1] (202) 338-4960

Email address and website

• Washington@diplobel.fed.be
• https://unitedstates.diplomatie.belgium.be/en

consulate(s) general

Atlanta, Los Angeles, New York