est-Vlaanderen; note - the
Brussels Capitol Region is not included within the 10 provinces

Independence: 21 July 1831 (from the Netherlands)

National holiday: Independence Day, 21 July (1831)

Constitution: 7 February 1831, last revised 14 July 1993; parliament
approved a constitutional package creating a federal state

Legal system: civil law system influenced by English constitutional
theory; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction, with reservations

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal and compulsory

Executive branch: chief of state: King ALBERT II (since 9 August
1993); Heir Apparent Prince PHILIPPE, son of the monarch

head of government: Prime Minister Guy VERHOFSTADT (since 13 July
1999)

cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the monarch and approved
by Parliament

elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister
appointed by the monarch and then approved by Parliament

note: government coalition - VLD, PRL, PS, SP, AGALEV, and ECOLO

Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament consists of a Senate or
Senaat in Dutch, Senat in French (71 seats; 40 members are directly
elected by popular vote, 31 are indirectly elected; members serve
four-year terms) and a Chamber of Deputies or Kamer van
Volksvertegenwoordigers in Dutch, Chambre des Representants in
French (150 seats; members are directly elected by popular vote on
the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)

elections: Senate and Chamber of Deputies - last held 13 June 1999
(next to be held in NA 2003)

election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - VLD 15.4%,
CVP 14.7%, PRL 10.6%, PS 9.7%, VB 9.4%, SP 8.9%, ECOLO 7.4%, AGALEV
7.1%, PSC 6.0%, VU 5.1%; seats by party - VLD 11, CVP 10, PS 10, PRL
9, VB 6, SP 6, ECOLO 6, AGALEV 5, PSC 5, VU 3; Chamber of Deputies -
percent of vote by party - VLD 14.3%, CVP 14.1%, PS 10.2%, PRL
10.1%, VB 9.9%, SP 9.5%, ECOLO 7.4%, AGALEV 7.0%, PSC 5.9%, VU 5.6%;
seats by party - VLD 23, CVP 22, PS 19, PRL 18, VB 15, SP 14, ECOLO
11, PSC 10, AGALEV 9, VU 8, FN 1

note: as a result of the 1993 constitutional revision that
furthered devolution into a federal state, there are now three
levels of government (federal, regional, and linguistic community)
with a complex division of responsibilities; this reality leaves six
governments each with its own legislative assembly; for other
acronyms of the listed parties see Political parties a