1859 Belgian general election

Partial general elections were held in Belgium on 14 June 1859.[1][2] The result was a victory for the Liberal Party, which won 69 of the 116 seats in the Chamber of Representatives and 31 of the 58 seats in the Senate.[2] Voter turnout was 55.9%, although only 49,672 people were eligible to vote.

1859 Belgian general election

14 June 1859 (1859-06-14)

58 of the 116 seats in the Chamber of Representatives
57 seats needed for a majority
  First party Second party
 
Leader Charles Rogier
Party Liberal Catholic
Leader since Candidate for PM
Seats before 70 seats 38 seats
Seats won 31 27
Seats after 69 47
Seat change 1 9
Popular vote 15,052 12,726
Percentage 54.19% 45.81%

Government before election

Rogier II
Liberal

Elected Government

Rogier II
Liberal

Under the alternating system, elections for the Chamber of Representatives were only held in five out of the nine provinces: Antwerp, Brabant, Luxembourg, Namur and West Flanders. Additionally, special elections were held on the same day in the arrondissements of Charleroi, Liège and Mons.

Campaign

Twelve of the 58 seats were uncontested, of which the Catholics won nine and the Liberals three.[3]

Results

Chamber of Representatives

Party Votes % Seats
Won Total +/–
Liberal Party15,05254.23169–1
Catholics12,72645.82747+9
Invalid/blank votes10,194
Total37,97210058116+8
Registered voters/turnout49,67255.9
Source: Mackie & Rose,[3] Sternberger et al

The results exclude the voting figures for the Leper Colony seat.[3]

Senate

Party Votes % Seats
Liberal Party31
Catholics27
Total58
Sternberger et al.

Constituencies

The distribution of seats among the electoral districts was as follows for the Chamber of Representatives, with the difference compared to the previous election due to population growth:[4]

ProvinceArrondissementSeatsChange
AntwerpAntwerp6
Mechelen3
Turnhout3+1
LimburgHasselt2
Maaseik1
Tongeren2
East FlandersAalst3
Oudenaarde3
Gent8
Eeklo1
Dendermonde3
Sint-Niklaas3
West FlandersBruges3
Roeselare2
Tielt2
Kortrijk4
Ypres3
Veurne1
Diksmuide1
Ostend1
BrabantLeuven4
Brussels11+2
Nivelles4
HainautTournai4
Ath2
Charleroi4+1
Thuin2
Mons5+1
Soignies3
LiègeHuy2
Waremme1
Liège7+2
Verviers3
LuxembourgArlon1
Marche1
Bastogne1
Neufchâteau1
Virton1
NamurNamur4+1
Dinant2
Philippeville2
116+8

References

  1. Codebook Constituency-level Elections Archive, 2003
  2. Sternberger, D, Vogel, B & Nohlen, D (1969) Die Wahl der Parlamente: Band I: Europa - Erster Halbband, p105
  3. Thomas T Mackie & Richard Rose (1991) The International Almanac of Electoral History, Macmillan, p46
  4. List of members of the Chamber of Representatives (1859)
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