The demise of symmetry between ‘sister parties’ has opened up a new chapter in Belgian politics

Belgium’s language divide between predominantly French-speaking Wallonia, and predominantly Dutch-speaking Flanders, is one of the key features underpinning the country’s party system. Régis Dandoy notes that while the language issue continues to be a major part of Belgian politics, the country’s political landscape has nevertheless undergone a significant change over the last decade, underlined by the outcome of the 2014 Belgian federal elections. He writes that the tendency to ensure symmetry in Belgian governments between ‘sister parties’ from the same party family has gradually become displaced by a new framework which has the potential to substantially alter the dynamics of Belgian politics.