Bart De Wever presents his resignation after failing to pass Belgium's budget

In Belgium, the resignation of the prime minister and the formation of another Government combine constitutional rules and political conventions. The king intervenes in accepting the resignation and appointing the successor, but does not govern personally: his acts require ministerial countersignature and the Executive needs parliamentary support. Submitting the resignation does not automatically trigger elections nor the immediate dismissal of the Government.

1. Submission and acceptance of the resignation

Normally, the prime minister submits to the king the resignation of the federal Government as a whole, not only his own. He may do so due to a coalition crisis, a political disagreement, or loss of parliamentary support.

In the case of a voluntary resignation, the monarch may accept it, reject it, or reserve his decision while solutions are explored. It is useful to distinguish the initial political acceptance from the definitive legal formalization of the dismissal, which usually occurs when a successor already exists. This distinction is developed in the legal study on Belgium.

Article 96 of the Belgian Constitution assigns to the king the appointment and dismissal of ministers. However, this competence operates within the parliamentary system, not as an unlimited political power.

2. Continuity of the outgoing Government

Once the resignation is politically accepted, the Executive usually continues in office to guarantee the continuity of the State until the swearing-in of the next Government. Its actions are limited by constitutional practice to current affairs. Therefore, acceptance of the resignation does not leave the country without executive authority during negotiations.

3. Consultations and negotiation of a majority

The king opens consultations with the presidents of the chambers, party leaders, and other personalities. These conversations allow checking which coalitions could support a new Executive. They are not an exhaustively regulated sequence by the Constitution: they mainly belong to institutional practice.

• An informateur may be appointed, responsible for exploring possible majorities and communicating his conclusions to the king.
• Then a formateur may be appointed, who negotiates the coalition, the program, and the distribution of ministries.

The formateur usually becomes prime minister, but there is no constitutional obligation that both roles fall on the same person. Nor do these missions constitute unchangeable stages: they can be adapted to the political situation.

4. Appointment, countersignature, and oath

When an agreement is reached, the composition of the Executive is presented to the king. The appointment is made by royal decrees and requires ministerial countersignature: according to article 106, the signature of a minister allows the royal act to produce effects and assigns the corresponding responsibility to the signatory.

In the usual transition, the outgoing prime minister countersigns the appointment of the incoming one; the latter then countersigns the dismissal of his predecessor and the ministerial appointments. The new members of the Government take the oath before the king. Subsequently, the prime minister presents the government declaration before the Chamber of Representatives, where confidence is debated and voted on.

5. Parliamentary replacement and possible elections

The voluntary resignation must be distinguished from the mechanism of article 96: the Chamber can demand the Government's departure through a constructive vote of no confidence, that is, simultaneously proposing a successor. It also contemplates the proposal of a successor after a confidence question is rejected. In these cases, the king appoints the proposed candidate and he takes office when the new Government is sworn in.

If no alternative majority appears, elections may be called, but only according to the assumptions of article 46. The Chamber of Representatives explains that dissolution must be followed by elections within forty days and the convening of the new Chamber within two months.

King Philippe of Belgium has an active role of mediation and facilitation during government crises, but he cannot govern on his own nor impose a coalition. His scope consists of exploring solutions, commissioning negotiations, and formalizing appointments; the continuity of the Executive depends on the confidence of the Chamber of Representatives.

1. Constitutional powers and limits

The Constitution assigns the king the federal executive power and, in its article 96, the appointment and dismissal of ministers. However, these powers operate within a parliamentary monarchy: the monarch is politically irresponsible and his acts require the countersignature of a minister, who assumes responsibility. Therefore, he does not have personal authority to direct the Government, as explained by the Belgian Constitution and the federal portal.

2. Consulting and seeking a majority

After a resignation, elections, or coalition breakdown, Philippe can consult the outgoing prime minister, the presidents of the chambers, and party leaders. The goal is to find out if there is a majority capable of supporting another Government or if the existing one can still be recomposed.

These conversations allow him to order attempts at solutions, but not to replace party decisions. He has leeway to choose interlocutors and negotiators, considering the real possibilities of obtaining parliamentary support. The Chamber of Representatives describes this role in government formation.

3. Commissioning negotiation missions

One of his main tools is to designate persons responsible for different missions:

• Informateur: explores coalition combinations, listens to parties, identifies obstacles, and communicates to the king which agreements seem possible.
• Formateur: negotiates the government agreement and the composition of the Executive. Usually ends up being prime minister, although not automatically.
• Mediators or preformateurs: receive intermediate assignments to unblock especially difficult conversations.

There is no rigid constitutional sequence that requires passing through all these phases. There may be successive assignments or a formateur may be appointed directly when the solution is clear, as explained in this guide on government formation.

4. Managing the resignation and ensuring continuity

When the prime minister submits his resignation, the king intervenes in its acceptance and in seeking a way out. The submission of the resignation does not mean the Executive immediately disappears: the resigning Government can continue handling current affairs until its successor takes office.

This mechanism avoids a power vacuum during prolonged negotiations. The king can open consultations and commission new missions, but cannot replace the cabinet in daily administration.

5. Appointing the Government and respecting Parliament

When an agreement is reached, Philippe appoints the prime minister and other Government members and receives their oath. Then, the Executive presents its political declaration and requests the confidence of the Chamber: the royal appointment does not replace that support.

Also, if the Chamber demands resignation through a constructive vote of no confidence — which proposes a successor — article 96 obliges the king to appoint the indicated candidate. The same applies if, after rejecting confidence, a successor is proposed within the constitutional deadline.

6. Dissolving the Chamber: a conditioned exit

The king cannot call early elections out of personal preference. Dissolution is subject to constitutional assumptions and requirements, linked to loss of confidence or government resignation, and requires ministerial responsibility.

In short, Philippe can facilitate, mediate, and formalize a solution; he cannot unilaterally decide which majority should govern.

The latest federal legislative elections in Belgium were held on June 9, 2024. The New Flemish Alliance (N-VA) was the most voted candidacy and obtained 24 of the 150 seats in the Chamber of Representatives, without reaching an outright majority. After negotiations, five parties formed the "Arizona" coalition, led by Bart De Wever and supported by 82 deputies.

Election results

Twelve candidacies obtained representation. The following distribution corresponds to the Chamber of Representatives; the percentages express the national vote of each party, not their percentage of seats. The results can be consulted in the Belgium fact sheet of the Spanish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and in this electoral summary:

• N-VA — New Flemish Alliance: 16.71% of the votes and 24 seats. It was the first candidacy both in votes and representation.
• Vlaams Belang — Flemish Interest: 13.77% and 20 seats. It occupied second place by number of votes.
• MR — Reformist Movement: 10.26% and 20 seats. Equaled Vlaams Belang in deputies.
• PTB-PVDA — Workers' Party: 9.86% and 15 seats.
• Vooruit: 8.11% and 13 seats.
• PS — Socialist Party: 8.04% and 16 seats.
• CD&V: 7.98% and 11 seats.
• Les Engagés: 6.77% and 14 seats.
• Open VLD: 5.44% and 7 seats.
• Groen: 4.64% and 6 seats.
• Ecolo: 2.92% and 3 seats.
• DéFI: 1.20% and 1 seat.

The order by votes does not exactly match the order by deputies: the PS obtained 16 seats, compared to 15 of PTB-PVDA and 13 of Vooruit, although it received a lower national percentage. To understand parliamentary majorities, therefore, the decisive figure is the number of seats and not only the vote percentage.

Parliamentary composition and Government majority

The absolute majority is 76 of the 150 deputies. The reference party distribution remains that arising from the 2024 elections, detailed above. It is useful to distinguish it from the nominal composition of the groups: the consulted sources do not offer an updated list that allows identifying possible individual changes of affiliation as of November 2, 2026.

The government coalition brings together N-VA, MR, Les Engagés, Vooruit, and CD&V. Their respective 24, 20, 14, 13, and 11 seats add up to 82: six more than the absolute majority threshold. None of these parties can sustain that majority alone.

The coalition agreement was reached on January 31, 2025 and Bart De Wever was sworn in as prime minister on February 3, 2025, succeeding Alexander De Croo. The formation of the Executive took almost eight months after the elections, according to the chronicle of its constitution.

Outside the coalition were Vlaams Belang, PS, PTB-PVDA, Open VLD, Groen, Ecolo, and DéFI, which together had 68 seats according to the electoral result. Vlaams Belang, despite being the second most voted candidacy and sharing second place in deputies with MR, did not enter the Executive.

A clarification on the scope

These figures describe the Chamber of Representatives and the majority supporting the federal Government. They should not be presented as a joint distribution of the entire Belgian Parliament: the gathered information does not include an updated composition of the Senate. The main conclusion is that N-VA won the elections, but the Government was born from an agreement among five parties, not from an electoral majority of a single candidacy.