Socialist Party (Belgium)
Political party in Belgium
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Socialist Party[17][18][19] (French: Parti socialiste [paʁti sɔsjalist], PS) is a social democratic[20] French-speaking and German-speaking political party in Belgium. As of the 2024 elections, it is the fourth largest party in the Belgian Chamber of Representatives and the second largest Francophone party. The party is led by Paul Magnette. The party supplies the minister-president of the French Community (Rudy Demotte), and the Brussels-Capital Region (Rudi Vervoort). In the German-speaking Community, the party is known as the Sozialistische Partei (SP).
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| |
| Abbreviation | PS |
| President | Paul Magnette |
| Founded | 1978 |
| Preceded by | Belgian Socialist Party |
| Headquarters | National Secretariat Bd de l'Empereur/Keizerslaan 13, Brussels |
| Think tank | Institut Emile Vandervelde[1] |
| Youth wing | Movement of Young Socialists |
| Membership (2021) | 32,000[2] |
| Ideology | Social democracy[9] |
| Political position | Centre-left to left-wing[16] |
| Regional affiliation | Socialists, Greens and Democrats |
| European affiliation | Party of European Socialists |
| European Parliament group | Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats |
| International affiliation | Progressive Alliance Socialist International |
| Flemish counterpart | Vooruit |
| Colours | Red |
| Chamber of Representatives (French-speaking seats) | 16 / 61 |
| Senate (French-speaking seats) | 7 / 24 |
| Walloon Parliament | 19 / 75 |
| Parliament of the French Community | 28 / 94 |
| Brussels Parliament (French-speaking seats) | 16 / 72 |
| European Parliament (French-speaking seats) | 2 / 8 |
| Benelux Parliament | 3 / 21 |
| Party flag | |
 | |
| Website | |
| ps.be | |
The PS is very commonly part of governing coalitions, and dominates most local authorities because of the extremely fragmented nature of Belgian political institutions, particularly in Francophone areas. In the years since 1999, the PS has simultaneously controlled five regional executive bodies: the Government of the French Community, the Walloon Government, the Government of the Brussels-Capital Region, as well as the COCOF, a local subsidiary in Brussels of the French Community Government, and the Government of the German-speaking Community.
The party, or its members, have from time to time been brought into connection with criminal activities and political scandals, mostly concerning bribery and financial fraud (Cools assassination, Agusta scandal, Dassault affair, Carolorégienne affair, ICDI affair). The Carolorégienne affair caused Jean-Claude Van Cauwenberghe to step down as minister-president of Wallonia.[21]
Ideology
The PS is a social democratic political party.[22] It is generally positioned in the centre-left or left of the political spectrum.[23]
On its current platform, the party identifies as progressive and eco-socialist.[24] It advocates for traditional socialist values such as equality, social justice, and (international) solidarity.[15] It is also committed to tax reform, better and more accessible health care, expanding the social safety net, and strengthening women's rights.[25]
Electoral positioning
During the 2019 election campaign, the RePresent research centre — composed of political scientists from five universities (UAntwerpen, KU Leuven, VUB, UCLouvain and ULB)[26][27] — studied the electoral programmes of Belgium's thirteen main political parties. This study classified the parties on two "left-right" axes, from "-5" (extreme left) to "5" (extreme right): a "classic" socio-economic axis, which refers to state intervention in the economic process and the degree to which the state should ensure social equality, and a socio-cultural axis, which refers to a divide articulated around an identity-based opposition on themes such as immigration, Europe, crime, the environment, emancipation, etc.[27]
The PS then presented the most left-wing programme, along with the PTB, on the socio-economic level (−4.43), and also left-wing on the socio-cultural level (−3.41).[27][28]
The RePresent centre repeated the exercise during the 2024 election campaign for the twelve main parties. The PS's positioning shifted towards the centre, while remaining on the left, on the socio-economic axis (−3.57) and remained unchanged on the socio-cultural axis (−3.46).[14]
Presidents
- 1978–1981: André Cools
- 1981–1992: Guy Spitaels
- 1992–1999: Philippe Busquin
- 1999–2011: Elio Di Rupo
- 2011–2013: Thierry Giet (ad interim)
- 2013–2014: Paul Magnette (ad interim)
- 2014–2019: Elio Di Rupo
- 2019–present: Paul Magnette
Representation in EU institutions
In the European Parliament, the PS sits in the S&D group with two MEPs: Elio Di Rupo and Estelle Ceulemans.[29][30]
Election results
The PS performed well in the 2003 general election[31] but was overtaken as the largest Francophone party by the Reformist Movement in the 2007 general election.[32]
In the 10 June 2007 general elections, the party won 20 out of 150 seats in the Chamber of Representatives[32] and 4 out of 40 seats in the Senate.[33] The PS was a member of the Leterme I Government, Van Rompuy I Government, Leterme II Government and Di Rupo I Government of 6 December 2011, with former PS leader Elio Di Rupo serving as prime minister of Belgium.
Chamber of Representatives
| Election | Votes | % | Seats | +/− | Government |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | 689,876 | 12.5 | 31 / 212 |
Coalition | |
| 1981 | 733,137 | 12.2 | 35 / 212 |
 4 |
Opposition |
| 1985 | 834,488 | 13.8 | 35 / 212 |
 0 |
Opposition |
| 1987 | 961,361 | 15.6 | 40 / 212 |
5 |
Coalition |
| 1991 | 831,199 | 13.5 | 35 / 212 |
 5 |
Coalition |
| 1995 | 720,819 | 11.9 | 21 / 150 |
14 |
Coalition |
| 1999 | 631,653 | 10.2 | 19 / 150 |
2 |
Coalition |
| 2003 | 855,992 | 13.0 | 25 / 150 |
6 |
Coalition |
| 2007 | 724,787 | 10.9 | 20 / 150 |
5 |
Coalition |
| 2010 | 894,543 | 13.7 | 26 / 150 |
6 |
Coalition |
| 2014 | 787,165 | 11.7 | 23 / 150 |
3 |
Opposition |
| 2019 | 641,623 | 9.5 | 20 / 150 |
3 |
External support (2020) |
| Coalition (2020–2025) | |||||
| 2024 | 561,602 | 8.0 | 16 / 150 |
4 |
Opposition |
Timeline
Results for the Chamber of Representatives, in percentages for the Kingdom of Belgium.
Senate
| Election | Votes | % | Seats | +/− |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | 685,307 | 12.5 | 17 / 106 |
|
| 1981 | 755,512 | 12.7 | 18 / 106 |
1 |
| 1985 | 832,792 | 13.9 | 18 / 106 |
0 |
| 1987 | 958,686 | 15.7 | 20 / 106 |
2 |
| 1991 | 814,136 | 13.3 | 18 / 106 |
2 |
| 1995 | 764,610 | 12.8 | 5 / 40 |
13 |
| 1999 | 597,890 | 9.7 | 4 / 40 |
1 |
| 2003 | 840,908 | 12.8 | 6 / 40 |
2 |
| 2007 | 678,812 | 10.2 | 4 / 40 |
2 |
| 2010 | 880,828 | 13.6 | 7 / 40 |
3 |
Regional
Brussels Parliament
| Election | Votes | % | Seats | +/− | Government | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F.E.C. | Overall | |||||
| 1989 | 96,189 | 22.0 (#1) | 18 / 75 |
Coalition | ||
| 1995 | 88,370 | 21.4 (#2) | 17 / 75 |
1 |
Coalition | |
| 1999 | 68,307 | 18.6 (#3) | 16.0 (#3) | 13 / 75 |
4 |
Coalition |
| 2004 | 130,462 | 33.4 (#1) | 28.7 (#1) | 26 / 89 |
13 |
Coalition |
| 2009 | 107,303 | 26.2 (#2) | 23.3 (#2) | 21 / 89 |
5 |
Coalition |
| 2014 | 108,755 | 26.6 (#1) | 23.5 (#1) | 21 / 89 |
|
Coalition |
| 2019 | 85,530 | 22.0 (#1) | 18.7 (#1) | 17 / 89 |
4 |
Coalition |
| 2024 | 85,929 | 22.1 (#2) | 16 / 89 |
1 |
Coalition | |
Walloon Parliament
| Election | Votes | % | Seats | +/− | Government |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 665,986 | 35.2 (#1) | 30 / 75 |
Coalition | |
| 1999 | 560,867 | 29.4 (#1) | 25 / 75 |
5 |
Coalition |
| 2004 | 727,781 | 36.9 (#1) | 34 / 75 |
9 |
Coalition |
| 2009 | 657,803 | 32.8 (#1) | 29 / 75 |
5 |
Coalition |
| 2014 | 626,473 | 30.9 (#1) | 30 / 75 |
1 |
Coalition (2014–2017) |
| Opposition (2017–2019) | |||||
| 2019 | 532,422 | 26.2 (#1) | 23 / 75 |
7 |
Coalition |
| 2024 | 480,003 | 23.2 (#2) | 19 / 75 |
4 |
Opposition |
German-speaking Community Parliament
| Election | Votes | % | Seats | +/− | Government |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 6,407 | 16.3 | 4 / 25 |
0 |
Opposition |
| 1995 | 5,958 | 16.1 | 4 / 25 |
0 |
Coalition |
| 1999 | 5,519 | 15.0 | 4 / 25 |
0 |
Coalition |
| 2004 | 6,903 | 19.0 | 5 / 25 |
1 |
Coalition |
| 2009 | 7,231 | 19.3 | 5 / 25 |
0 |
Coalition |
| 2014 | 6,047 | 16.1 | 4 / 25 |
1 |
Coalition |
| 2019 | 5,820 | 14.8 | 4 / 25 |
0 |
Coalition |
| 2024 | 5,473 | 13.7 | 3 / 25 |
1 |
Opposition |
European Parliament
| Election | List leader | Votes | % | Seats | +/− | EP Group | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F.E.C. | G.E.C. | F.E.C. | G.E.C. | Overall | |||||
| 1979 | Anne-Marie Lizin (F.E.C.) | 575,824 | N/a | 27.43 (#1) | N/a | 10.58 | 4 / 24 |
New | SOC |
| 1984 | Ernest Glinne (F.E.C.) | 762,293 | N/a | 34.04 (#1) | N/a | 13.32 | 5 / 24 |
1 | |
| 1989 | Ernest Glinne (F.E.C.) | 854,207 | N/a | 38.13 (#1) | N/a | 14.48 | 5 / 24 |
0 | |
| 1994 | José Happart (F.E.C.) Unclear (G.E.C.) |
680,142 | 4,820 | 30.44 (#1) | 12.57 (#5) | 11.48 | 3 / 25 |
2 |
PES |
| 1999 | Philippe Busquin (F.E.C.) Charles Servaty (G.E.C.) |
596,567 | 4,215 | 25.78 (#2) | 11.42 (#4) | 9.59 | 3 / 25 |
0 | |
| 2004 | Elio Di Rupo (F.E.C.) Werner Baumgarten (G.E.C.) |
878,577 | 5,527 | 36.09 (#1) | 14.94 (#3) | 13.54 | 4 / 24 |
1 | |
| 2009 | Jean-Claude Marcourt (F.E.C.) Resi Stoffels (G.E.C.) |
714,947 | 5,658 | 29.10 (#1) | 14.63 (#4) | 10.88 | 3 / 22 |
1 |
S&D |
| 2014 | Marie Arena (F.E.C.) Antonios Antoniadis (G.E.C.) |
714,645 | 5,835 | 29.29 (#1) | 15.12 (#4) | 10.68 | 3 / 21 |
0 | |
| 2019 | Paul Magnette (F.E.C.) Matthias Zimmermann (G.E.C.) |
651,157 | 4,655 | 26.69 (#1) | 11.42 (#4) | 9.74 | 2 / 21 |
1 | |
| 2024 | Elio Di Rupo (F.E.C.) Charles Servaty (G.E.C.) |
529,697 | 5,131 | 20.52 (#1) | 11.82 (#5) | 7.50 | 2 / 22 |
0 | |
Notable figures
