1894 Belgian general election

Full general elections were held in Belgium on 14 October 1894,[1] with run-off elections held on 21 October 1894.

1894 Belgian general election

14 October 1894 (1894-10-14)

All 152 seats in the Chamber of Representatives
77 seats needed for a majority
  First party Second party
 
Leader Jules de Burlet Grégoire Serwy
Party Catholic Labour
Leader since Candidate for PM 1893
Seats before 92 seats 0 seats
Seats won 102 27
Seat change Increase 10 Increase 27
Popular vote 926,987 301,940
Percentage 56.38% 18.36%

  Third party Fourth party
 
Leader N/A
Party Liberal LSK
Leader since N/A
Seats before 60 seats New
Seats won 17 4
Seat change Decrease 43 New
Popular vote 515,808 32,914
Percentage 31.37% 2.00%

Government before election

de Burlet
Catholic

Government after election

de Burlet
Catholic

The elections followed several major reforms: they were the first held under universal male suffrage for those over the age of 25.[2] This followed the abolition of tax qualifications, and increased the number of voters tenfold.[2] Voting was also made compulsory. Provincial senators were introduced in addition to the existing directly elected ones.

The electoral reforms were implemented in 1893 under the Catholic government led by Auguste Beernaert, who had been in power for nearly ten years, but who resigned because his proposal for proportional representation was rejected. A government led by Jules de Burlet took over in March 1894.

The result was a victory for the Catholic Party, which won all seats in every Flemish arrondissement, in Brussels and in seven rural Walloon arrondissements, giving a total of 104 of the 152 seats in the Chamber of Representatives.[3] The Belgian Labour Party gained parliamentary representation for the first time, winning all seats of Mons, Soignies, Charleroi, Verviers, 6 seats in Liège and one in Namur. Meanwhile, the Liberal Party, despite receiving more votes than the socialists, won only 20 seats and thus lost two-thirds of its seats.[4] This was caused by the concentration of socialists in industrial Walloon areas, compared to the dispersed presence of liberal voters throughout the country. This highlighted the need for a proportional system, which would eventually be introduced in 1899.

Results

Chamber of Representatives

PartyVotes%Seats+/–
Catholic Party926,98750.05102+10
Liberal Party515,80827.8517–43
Belgian Labour Party301,94016.3027+27
LiberalSocialist kartels32,9141.784New
Christene Volkspartij26,2241.421+1
Other parties48,3542.611+1
Total1,852,227100.001520
Valid votes1,644,20496.00
Invalid/blank votes68,4634.00
Total votes1,712,667100.00
Registered voters/turnout2,085,60582.12
Source: Belgian Elections

Senate

76 senators (half the number of representatives) were directly elected and 26 senators were chosen by the provincial councils, giving a total of 102 senators.

PartyVotes%
Catholic Party597,18452.48
Liberal Party495,28843.53
Liberal PartySocialist cartels28,8122.53
Belgian Labour Party16,5351.45
Total1,137,819100.00
Registered voters/turnout1,148,433
Source: Nohlen & Stöver

Constituencies

The distribution of seats among the electoral districts was as follows for the Chamber of Representatives and the Senate.[5] There were no changes in districts and seat distribution compared to the previous election, except for the introduction of provincial senators.

ProvinceArrondissementChamberWon bySenateWon by
AntwerpAntwerp11Catholics5Catholics
Mechelen4Catholics2Catholics
Turnhout3Catholics2Catholics
Elected by the provincial council3Catholics
LimburgHasselt3Catholics1Catholics
Maaseik1Catholics1Catholics
Tongeren2Catholics1Catholics
Elected by the provincial council2Catholics
East FlandersAalst4Catholics2Catholics
Oudenaarde3Catholics1Catholics
Gent9Catholics4Catholics
Eeklo1Catholics1Catholics
Dendermonde3Catholics2Catholics
Sint-Niklaas4Catholics2Catholics
Elected by the provincial council3Catholics
West FlandersBruges3Catholics2Catholics
Roeselare2Catholics1Catholics
Tielt2Catholics1Catholics
Kortrijk4Catholics2Catholics
Ypres3Catholics1Catholics
Veurne1Catholics1Catholics
Diksmuide1Catholics
Ostend2Catholics1Catholics
Elected by the provincial council3Catholics
BrabantLeuven6Catholics3Catholics
Brussels18Catholics9Catholics
Nivelles4Liberals (3), Catholics (1)2Liberals
Elected by the provincial council4Catholics
HainautTournai4Catholics2Catholics
Ath2Catholics1Catholics
Charleroi8Socialists4Liberals
Thuin3Liberals1Liberals
Mons6Socialists3Liberals
Soignies3Socialists2Liberals
Elected by the provincial council4Liberals (2), Socialists (2)
LiègeHuy2Liberals1Liberals
Waremme2Catholics1Liberals
Liège11Socialists (6), Liberals (5)5Liberals
Verviers4Socialists2Liberals (1), Catholics (1)
Elected by the provincial council3Liberals
LuxembourgArlon1Liberals1Liberals
Virton1Liberals
Marche1Catholics1Catholics
Bastogne1Catholics
Neufchâteau1Catholics1Catholics
Elected by the provincial council2Catholics
NamurNamur4Liberals (3), Socialists (1)2Liberals
Dinant2Catholics1Catholics
Philippeville2Liberals1Liberals
Elected by the provincial council2Catholics
15276+26

References

  1. Nohlen, Dieter; Stöver, Philip (31 May 2010). Elections in Europe: A data handbook. Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft. p. 289. ISBN 978-3-8329-5609-7.
  2. Nohlen & Stöver, p272
  3. Nohlen & Stöver, p307
  4. Nohlen & Stöver, p273
  5. List of members of the Chamber of Representatives (1894-1895)
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