Low participation of foreigners in upcoming Belgian municipal elections

This election year will be the fourth time that non-Belgians who reside in Belgium can vote in municipal elections. Yet participation remains low, as shown by the figures released by the FPS Interior ahead of the registration deadline, on 31 July 2024.

Since 2004, non-Belgians residing in Belgium can vote in local elections. While voting is mandatory for Belgian citizens, foreign nationals must voluntarily register with their municipality if they wish to participate. In anticipation of the upcoming municipal elections which will take place on 13 October 2024, foreign nationals can register before 31 July.

This will be the fourth time that EU citizens and non-EU citizens (the latter must have resided in Belgium for more than five years) can participate in the municipal elections. Yet participation figures remain incredibly low. On 13 July, the Federal Public Service (FPS) Interior published provisional counts of registrations: only 12.26% non-Belgians (both EU nationals and third-country nationals) were registered, which translates to 130 611 people out of a total of 1 064 506 potential voters.

Participation is highest in Wallonia, where nearly 22% of EU-nationals and 10% of third-country nationals are registered to vote (with the exception of the nine German-speaking municipalities), compared to only 8.5% and 5%, respectively, in Flanders. The nine German-speaking municipalities have a rate of 14.33% of registered voters from the EU and 2.30% for third-country nationals. In the Brussels-Capital Region, 13% of EU-nationals registered, and 9.5% of third-country nationals.

The FPS Interior will provide an update of the figures by mid-August. “But I don’t expect them to have increased dramatically by then,” says social worker Didier Vanderslycke, who is supporting the "Ik stem ook" campaign, which aims to get more non-Belgians to vote in Flanders. Experts mention multiple reasons for this low participation: from lack of information on the possibility to vote, which greatly varies across municipalities, to lack of interest due to a perceived low impact of voting.

Criteria to register before 31 July 2024:

Non-Belgians can register for the municipal election if they meet the following criteria:

  • are 18 years old on 13 October 2024 at the latest;
  • are registered in the municipality's population register or in the register of foreigners no later than 1 August 2024;
  • enjoy their civil and political rights, i.e. not be suspended or excluded from the right to vote on the day of the election.

Third-country nationals (nationals from a country outside the European Union) must meet the additional criteria:

  • have established their main residence in Belgium, on the basis of a legal residence permit, for an uninterrupted period of 5 years preceding the submission of the application;
  • declare to respect the Belgian Constitution, the Belgian legislation, and the European Convention on Human Rights.

More information on the procedure to register:

Publication Date:
Geography:
Belgium
Keywords:
election, vote, foreign national
Main theme:
Integration
Commissioner:
National public services
News type:
News item