Bart De Wever’s Flemish nationalist N-VA is on course to remain Belgium’s biggest party. The far right Vlaams Belang is snapping at N-VA’s heels but unlike the predictions is not overtaking the nationalists Flanderswide. PM De Croo’s liberal Open VLD faces heavy losses across northern Belgium.
N-VA and Vlaams Belang are close in West Flanders, with Vlaams Belang in the lead in Limburg and East Flanders. The far right polled around 22 percent – a gain of over 3 percent compared to the 2019 general election. The party falls short of its 24.2 percent score recorded in 2004. A coalition of Bart De Wever’s N-VA, Melissa Depraetere’s socialist Vooruit and Sammy Mahdi’s Christian democrats has a comfortable majority.
Liberal woes
Federal PM Alexander De Croo’s liberals are the biggest losers in Flanders. The party drops below 10 percent. Party leader Tom Ongena has already indicated the party would favour opposition in this case.
In Limburg the greens are flirting with the 5% election threshold needed to secure seats.
Socialist Vooruit is delivering on the forecasts of the opinion polls. Vooruit becomes Flanders’ third largest party with around 13 percent. The Christian democrats at 12 percent incur modest losses, while the Communist Labour Party shoots ahead overshadowing the liberals and the greens.
In bilingual Brussels the Francophone liberal MR is the biggest party. The ecologists of Groen are the biggest Flemish party while Team Fouad Ahidar, a breakaway from Vooruit, is second on around 14 percent.