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85+6 of 166 seats in the Chamber of Representatives | ||
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Partial general elections were held in Belgium on 25 May 1902. [1] The result was a victory for the Catholic Party, which won 54 of the 85 seats up for election in the Chamber of Representatives. [2] Voter turnout was 95.7%. [3]
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Western Europe. It is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to the southwest, and the North Sea to the northwest. It covers an area of 30,688 square kilometres (11,849 sq mi) and has a population of more than 11.4 million. The capital and largest city is Brussels; other major cities are Antwerp, Ghent, Charleroi and Liège.
The Catholic Party was established in 1869 as the Confessional Catholic Party.
Under the alternating system, elections were only held in five out of the nine provinces: Antwerp, Brabant, Luxembourg, Namur and West Flanders. In addition to the regular elections for these 85 seats, elections were held for one seat (6 in total) in Ghent-Eeklo, Aalst, Soignies, Charleroi, Liège and Verviers because the number of representatives increased for these electoral arrondissements following the population census.
Luxembourg, also called Belgian Luxembourg, is the southernmost province of Wallonia and of Belgium. It borders on the country of Luxembourg, France, and the Belgian provinces of Namur and Liège. Its capital is Arlon, in the south-east of the province.
A month earlier, a general strike was held, aimed at forcing electoral reform and notably the end of the system of plural voting. However, it was unsuccessful. The Catholic Party, being against reform, even strengthened their majority in the elections.
The general strike of 1902 was a major general strike in Belgium, aimed at forcing electoral reform and notably the end of the system of plural voting. It officially lasted between 10 and 20 April. The 1902 strike was the second general strike in Belgium's history and although the largest, it was ultimately unsuccessful at achieving its objectives.
Electoral reform is change in electoral systems to improve how public desires are expressed in election results. That can include reforms of:
Plural voting is the practice whereby one person might be able to vote multiple times in an election. It is not to be confused with a plurality voting system which does not necessarily involve plural voting. Weighted voting is a generalisation of plural voting.
Party | Votes | % | Seats won | Total seats | +/- |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Catholic Party | 596,382 | 56.00 | 54 | 93 | +7 |
Liberal Party | 266,891 | 25.06 | 20 | 33 | +2 |
Belgian Labour Party | 159,370 | 14.97 | 10 | 32 | 0 |
Christian Democratic Party | 26,435 | 2.48 | 1 | 2 | +1 |
Other parties | 15,848 | 1.49 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Radical Party | - | - | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Invalid/blank votes | 0 | – | – | - | - |
Total | 1,064,926 | 100 | 85 | 162 | +10 |
Source: Belgian Elections |
The distribution of seats among the electoral districts was as follows. [4] Several arrondissements got one or more additional seats, following the population census.
Province | Arrondissement(s) | Seats | Change |
---|---|---|---|
Antwerp | Antwerp | 13 | +2 |
Mechelen | 4 | – | |
Turnhout | 3 | – | |
Limburg | Hasselt | 3 | – |
Tongeren-Maaseik | 3 | – | |
East Flanders | Aalst | 5 | +1 |
Oudenaarde | 3 | – | |
Gent-Eeklo | 11 | +1 | |
Dendermonde | 3 | – | |
Sint-Niklaas | 4 | – | |
West Flanders | Bruges | 4 | +1 |
Roeselare-Tielt | 4 | – | |
Kortrijk | 5 | +1 | |
Ypres | 3 | – | |
Veurne-Diksmuide-Ostend | 4 | – | |
Brabant | Leuven | 6 | – |
Brussels | 21 | +3 | |
Nivelles | 4 | – | |
Hainaut | Tournai-Ath | 6 | – |
Charleroi | 9 | +1 | |
Thuin | 3 | – | |
Mons | 6 | – | |
Soignies | 3 | +1 | |
Liège | Huy-Waremme | 4 | – |
Liège | 12 | +1 | |
Verviers | 5 | +1 | |
Luxembourg | Arlon-Marche-Bastogne | 3 | – |
Neufchâteau-Virton | 2 | – | |
Namur | Namur | 5 | – |
Dinant-Philippeville | 4 | – | |
Total | 166 | +14 |
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