The European Parliament elections aren’t the only elections taking place this June that can change the landscape of governance in Brussels. On June 9, Belgians will go to the polls for their regional and national elections on the same day as they vote for the new European Parliament. Ahead of the election, the Europe Center is answering the big questions about the vote, leading parties, and top issues on the ballot.
Why does this election matter? The most eye-catching—and perhaps slightly hyperbolic—reason these elections matter is that the future of the Belgian state may hang in the balance. Pro-separatist parties in Belgium’s northern, Dutch-speaking Flanders region are poised to take the largest share of votes. These parties have advocated for the independence of Belgium’s northern province, ending an unhappy marriage with French-speaking Wallonia to the south.
But don’t rush to throw away your maps just yet: Belgium is likely not splitting up anytime soon. The country is notoriously difficult to govern, and divvying up the country has been a much-discussed idea for decades. It’ll come down to what the new government in Belgium looks like—and whether it has any separatist involvement.
The election holds implications beyond the future of the Belgian state. The majority of the frozen Russian assets in Europe sit in Belgium’s jurisdiction, and Belgium is working out how to best manage and implement the various ideas being mooted regarding what to do with the.