The 2014 Federal and European Elections in Belgium

Highlights: • The Flemish regionalist party N-VA won the elections and entered the federal government. • Flemish radical-right and populist parties suffered heavy losses and became marginal actors. • The French-speaking party system became more fragmented as small political forces entered the federal parliament. • The federal government formation ‘only’ took 139 days (compared to 541 days in 2010). • The incumbent government was replaced by a centre-right cabinet despite its relatively good electoral performance in a difficult economic and institutional context.