1894 Belgian general election
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All 152 seats in the Chamber of Representatives 77 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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 Belgium portal |
General elections were held in Belgium on 14 October 1894,[1] with run-off elections held on 21 October 1894.
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 result was a victory for the Catholic Party, which won 104 of the 152 seats in the Chamber of Representatives.[3] The Belgian Labour Party gained parliamentary representation for the first time, whilst the Liberal Party lost two-thirds of its seats.[4]
Results
Chamber of Representatives
| Party | Votes | % | Seats | +/– |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Catholic Party | 926,987 | 50.0 | 104 | +12 |
| Liberal Party | 515,808 | 27.8 | 20 | –40 |
| Belgian Labour Party | 301,940 | 16.3 | 28 | +28 |
| Liberal-Socialist Cartels | 32,914 | 1.8 | 0 | – |
| Christene Volkspartij | 26,224 | 1.4 | 0 | 0 |
| Other parties | 48,354 | 2.6 | 0 | – |
| Invalid/blank votes | 89,364 | – | – | – |
| Total | 1,941,591 | 100 | 152 | 0 |
| Source: Nohlen & Stöver | ||||
Senate
74 senators were directly elected and 26 senators were chosen by the provincial councils, giving a total of 100 senators.
| Party | Votes | % | Seats |
|---|---|---|---|
| Catholic Party | 597,184 | 52.5 | |
| Liberal Party | 495,288 | 43.5 | |
| Liberal-Socialist Cartels | 28,812 | 2.5 | |
| Belgian Labour Party | 16,535 | 1.5 | |
| Invalid/blank votes | – | – | |
| Total | 1,137,819 | 100 | |
| Source: Nohlen & Stöver | |||
Constituencies
The distribution of seats among the electoral districts was as follows for the Chamber of Representatives.[5] There were no changes compared to the previous election.
| Province | Arrondissement | Seats |
|---|---|---|
| Antwerp | Antwerp | 11 |
| Mechelen | 4 | |
| Turnhout | 3 | |
| Limburg | Hasselt | 3 |
| Maaseik | 1 | |
| Tongeren | 2 | |
| East Flanders | Aalst | 4 |
| Oudenaarde | 3 | |
| Gent | 9 | |
| Eeklo | 1 | |
| Dendermonde | 3 | |
| Sint-Niklaas | 4 | |
| West Flanders | Bruges | 3 |
| Roeselare | 2 | |
| Tielt | 2 | |
| Kortrijk | 4 | |
| Ypres | 3 | |
| Veurne | 1 | |
| Diksmuide | 1 | |
| Ostend | 2 | |
| Brabant | Leuven | 6 |
| Brussels | 18 | |
| Nivelles | 4 | |
| Hainaut | Tournai | 4 |
| Ath | 2 | |
| Charleroi | 8 | |
| Thuin | 3 | |
| Mons | 6 | |
| Soignies | 3 | |
| Liège | Huy | 2 |
| Waremme | 2 | |
| Liège | 11 | |
| Verviers | 4 | |
| Luxembourg | Arlon | 1 |
| Marche | 1 | |
| Bastogne | 1 | |
| Neufchâteau | 1 | |
| Virton | 1 | |
| Namur | Namur | 4 |
| Dinant | 2 | |
| Philippeville | 2 | |
| 152 |
References
- ^ Nohlen, Dieter; Stöver, Philip (31 May 2010). Elections in Europe: A data handbook. Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft. p. 289. ISBN 978-3-8329-5609-7.
- ^ a b Nohlen & Stöver, p272
- ^ Nohlen & Stöver, p307
- ^ Nohlen & Stöver, p273
- ^ List of members of the Chamber of Representatives (1894-1895)
