Socialist Party (francophone Belgium)
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| Parti Socialiste | |
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| Leader | Elio Di Rupo |
| Political Ideology | Social democracy |
| Founded | 1978 |
| Earlier name(s) | PS/SP, PSB/BSP, POB/BWP |
| International Affiliation | Socialist International |
| European Affiliation | Party of European Socialists |
| European Parliament Group | Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats |
| Cartel | None |
| Flemish counterpart | Socialist Party Different (SP.A) |
| Website | www.ps.be |
| Headquarters | national secretariat Bd de l'Empereur/Keizerslaan 13, Brussels |
| Colours | Red |
| See also | Politics of Belgium Politics of Flanders Politics of Wallonia |
The Socialist Party (French: Parti Socialiste, PS) is a Francophone social democratic political party in Belgium. As of the 2007 elections, it is the second largest Francophone party in the Belgian Chamber of Representatives. The party is led by Elio Di Rupo and supplies the Ministers-President of the Walloon region (Rudy Demotte), of the Brussels-Capital Region (Charles Picqué) and the French Community (Marie Arena) and of the German-speaking Community (Karl-Heinz Lambertz) Communities of Belgium. In the German-speaking community, the party is known as Sozialistische Partei (SP).
The PS is very commonly part of governing coalitions, and dominates most local authorities because of the extremely fragmented nature of Belgian political institutions, particularly in Francophone areas. In the years since 1999, the PS has simultaneously controlled five regional executive bodies: the Francophone Community Government, the Walloon Regional Government, the Brussels Regional Government, as well as the COCOF, a local subsidiary in Brussels of the Francophone Community Government and the German-speaking Community Government. The PS performed well in the 2003 general election, but were overtaken as the largest Francophone party by the Reformist Movement in the 2007 general election
The ideology and image of the PS is a mix of old-style state interventionism, combined with a modern electoral marketing (since Elio Di Rupo became the party's strongman).
The party, or its members, have from time to time been brought into connection with criminal activities and political scandals, mostly concerning bribery and financial fraud ( Cools assassination, Agusta scandal, Dassault Affair, Carolorégienne affair, ICDI affair). The Carolorégienne affair caused Jean-Claude Van Cauwenberghe to step down as Minister-President of the Walloon region.
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[edit] 2007 elections
In the 10 June 2007 general elections, the party won 20 out of 150 seats in the Chamber of Representatives and 4 out of 40 seats in the Senate. PS was a member of the Leterme I Government, and is currently a member of the Van Rompuy I Government which was formed on 30 December 2008.
[edit] Notable figures
[edit] Chairmen
- André Cools, 1978-1981 (previously leader of the Walloon branch of the BSP/PSB)
- Guy Spitaels, 1981-1992
- Philippe Busquin, 1992-1999
- Elio Di Rupo, 1999-present
[edit] Other
- Rudy Demotte
- André Flahaut
- Jean-Claude Marcourt
- Philippe Moureaux
- Laurette Onkelinx
- Jean-Claude Van Cauwenberghe
[edit] External links
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