Belgium
Data on women
empty
Basic information > About parliament
Speaker
Speaker
Eliane
Tillieux
(Female)
Year of birth
1966
Additional information
Elected on 13 Oct. 2020, re-elected on 12 Oct. 2021.
The Speaker is elected after each general election and at the beginning of the parliamentary term, on the second Tuesday of October each year, for a one-year term of office. The Speaker may be re-elected.
The Speaker is elected after each general election and at the beginning of the parliamentary term, on the second Tuesday of October each year, for a one-year term of office. The Speaker may be re-elected.
Secretary general
Secretary General
Marc
Van der Hulst
(Male)
Notes
Additional information about the Secretary General, in particular regarding their term.
1 Oct. 2016 -
Members
Current number of members, by sex
Men
The number of male parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
Women
The number of female parliamentarians who currently hold seats in parliament.
Percentage of women
Calculated by dividing the current number of women by the current number of members.
Age
Average age of all members
Age at the time of the last election or renewal.
Youngest member (years)
Age at the time of the last election or renewal.
Youngest member
Dries Van Langenhove (Male)
Oldest member (years)
Age at the time of the last election or renewal.
67
Oldest member
Josy Arens (Male)
Total number of MPs, 45 years of age or younger
Total number of MPs, 46 years of age or older
Total per sex
Total of male
Total of female
Total per age interval
18-20
0
31-40
41-45
46-50
51-60
61-70
81-90
0
91 and over
0
Number of members, by age
| 18 - 20 | 21 - 30 | 31 - 40 | 41 - 45 | 46 - 50 | 51 - 60 | 61 - 70 | 71 - 80 | 81 - 90 | 91 and over | Totals per gender | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Totals per age interval | 0 | 5 | 37 | 39 | 33 | 22 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| Total <= 45: 81 | Total >= 46: 69 | ||||||||||
| Male | 0 | 2 | 16 | 21 | 22 | 13 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 87 |
| Female | 0 | 3 | 21 | 18 | 11 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 63 |
Reserved seats and quotas
Electoral quota for women
Quotas to promote the representation of women in parliament.
Notes
Legislated candidate quotas. On electoral lists, the number of candidates of either gender cannot be greater than the other. This also applies to the list of alternates. The two top candidates on candidate lists and on the lists of alternates cannot be of the same gender.
Elections > Election results
Candidates
Total number of candidates
Total number of people who registered as candidates for election. Does not include people who stood as candidates to become "substitute members".
1,599
Number of female candidates
Number of female candidates
780
Percentage of women candidates
The percentage is calculated by dividing the number of women candidates by the total number of candidates.
48.78%
Number of candidates, by sex
Number of female candidates
Number of female candidates
780
Percentage of women candidates
The percentage is calculated by dividing the number of women candidates by the total number of candidates.
48.78%
Results
Members elected, by sex
Number of men elected
91
Number of women elected
59
Percentage of women elected
The percentage is calculated by dividing the number of women elected in the election and the number of seats at stake at the election.
39.33%
Number of women after election or renewal, by mode of designation
Women Directly Elected
59
New legislature
Total number of men after the election
The total number of male parliamentarians in this parliament/chamber following the election or renewal, regardless of their modes of designation.
91
Total number of women after the election
The total number of female parliamentarians in this parliament/chamber following the election or renewal, regardless of their modes of designation.
59
First Speaker of the new legislature
First Speaker of the new legislature
First name of the Speaker of the new legislature following the election or renewal.
Patrick
Dewael
(Male)
Political party
Open vld
Date of election
30.06.2014
Elections > Historical data on women
Women's suffrage
Women’s right to vote
Women’s right to vote
Year in which women obtained the right to vote
1919
National or local
Suffrage: National or Local
National
Restricted or unrestricted suffrage
Suffrage: Restricted or Universal
Restricted
Detail of restrictions
Suffrage: Restrictions detail
Suffrage only given to widows or mothers of servicemen killed during World War One, citizens shot or killed by the enemy and women political prisoners
Notes
Suffrage: Additional Notes on right of suffrage
Contained in the law of 9 May 1919. Universal suffrage was introduced for men in 1919.
Women’s right to vote
Year in which women obtained the right to vote
1948
National or local
Suffrage: National or Local
National
Restricted or unrestricted suffrage
Suffrage: Restricted or Universal
Universal
Notes
Suffrage: Additional Notes on right of suffrage
The Law of 27 March 1948 gave all women the right to vote under the same conditions as for men. Women voted for the first time in 1949.
Women’s right to stand for election
Women's right to stand for election
Year in which women obtained the right to stand for election
1921
National or local
Stand for Election: National or Local
National
First woman in parliament
First woman in parliament
Year in which first woman entered parliament
1921
First woman speaker
Year of first woman speaker
Date at which, for the first time in the country's parliamentary history, a woman became Presiding Officer of Parliament or of one of its Houses.
2004