Belgium, independent from the Netherlands, has developed a federal representative democratic monarchy, with executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government.

Political System

The Kingdom of Belgium is considered a federal parliamentary representative democratic monarchy, with the seat of government centered in the capital city, Brussels. The country, via a provisional government, originally declared its independence from the Netherlands on October 4, 1830. King Leopold I ascended to the throne on July 21, 1831. The national holiday is the ascension to the Throne of King Leopold I, celebrated on July 21.

Belgium’s current constitution was originally adopted on February 7, 1831. The constitution has been amended many times, most notably in 1993 to create a feferal state. The document allows for universal and compulsory suffrage at 18 years of age.

Administrative Regions

The Kingdom of Belgium consists of 10 provinces and three regions:

Provinces

• Antwerpen (Antwerp)
• Brabant Wallon (Walloon Brabant)
• Hainaut
• Liege
• Limburg,
• Luxembourg
• Namur
• Oost-Vlaanderen (East Flanders)
• Vlaams-Brabant (Flemish Brabant)
• West-Vlaanderen (West Flanders)

Regions

• Brussels (Bruxelles)
• Flanders
• Wallonia

Executive Branch

King Albert II is Belgium’s chief of state, assuming the position on August 9, 1993. The king’s heir apparent is his son, Prince Philippe, the Duke of Brabant, born on April 15, 1960.

The head of government is the Prime Minister. This person is typically the leader of the majority party or coalition, appointed by the monarch with the approval of Parliament. Guy Verhofstadt, the current Prime Minister, began his official duties on July 13, 1999, and has four Deputy Prime Ministers: Laurette Onkelinx, Didier Reynders, Freya van den Bossche, and Patrick Dewael.

The Council of Ministers is the governmental cabinet. All cabinet ministers are appointed by the monarch. The current ministers are:

• Budget and Public Enterprise - Freya van den Bossche
• Defense - Andre Flahaut
• Economy, Energy, Foreign Trade, and Science Policy - Marc Verwilghen
• Finance - Didier Reynders
• Foreign Affairs - Karel De Gucht
• Interior - Patrick Dewael
• Justice - Laurette Onkelinx
• Ambassador to the United Nations - Johan Verbeke
• Ambassador to the United States - Dominicus Struye de Swielande

Legislative Branch

The Belgian Parliament is a bicameral body consisting of the 71-seat Senate (Senaat/Senat) and the 150-seat Chamber of Deputies (Kamer van Volksvertegenwoordigers/Chambre des Representants). Forty Senate members are elected by popular vote and 31 are indirectly elected, all for four year terms. Members of the Chamber of Deputies are elected by popular vote via proportional representation to four year terms.

The current structure of the Senate, by political party is (number of seats):

• Christian Democrats and Flemish - New Flemish Alliance (CD&V-NVA)* - 9
• Flemish Liberal and Democrats (VLD)* - 5
• Reform Movement (MR)** - 6
• Vlaams Belang (VB)* - 5
• Socialist Party (PS)** - 4
• Social Progressive Alternative-Spirit (SP.A-Spirit)* - 4
• Humanist and Democratic Center (CDH)** - 2
• Ecolo** - 2
• GROEN!* - 1
• List Dedecker* - 1
• National Front (FN)** - 1
• Indirectly Elected - 31

The current structure of the Chamber of Deputies, by political party is (number of seats):

• Christian Democrats and Flemish - New Flemish Alliance (CD&V-NVA)* - 30
• Reform Movement (MR)** - 23
• Vlaams Belang (VB)* - 17
• Flemish Liberal and Democrats (VLD)* - 18
• Socialist Party (PS)** - 20
• Social Progressive Alternative-Spirit (SP.A-Spirit)* - 14
• Humanist and Democratic Center (CDH)** - 10
• Ecolo** - 8
• List Dedecker* - 5
• GROEN!* - 4
• National Front (FN)** - 1

The 1993 constitutional revision allows for three levels of government (federal, regional, and linguistic community) with a complex division of responsibilities. This divide has created six governments, each with its own legislative assembly.

Judicial Branch

The country’s judicial branch consists of the Supreme Court of Justice. Justices are appointed for life by government.

Legal System

The Belgian legal system is based on civil law with influences by English constitutional theory. The country has accepted compulsory International Court of Justice (ICJ) jurisdiction with reservations.

* Flemish political parties

** Francophone political parties

References

Barrientos, Miguel. Index Mundi. 2007.

“Belgian Government Information.” Travel Document Systems. 2007.