The basics
The candidates had to submit their final intention to run on 15 September - just a month before the elections.
National broadcaster VRT has an election minisite - where you can choose your municipality to view the candidates and later also the results:
Some Flemish debates will be held in the region, with televised live debates for Leuven, Aarschot; Tienen and Diest planned by local station ROB.tv - check out their Leuven election page for details.
How to find information
Read the party materials
The parties listed below will be running in Leuven. They are listed in alphabetical order, with a link to their website. We suggest you browse their websites and social pages to inform yourself about the policies and local issues they are campaigning about. Most information will be in Dutch, so use browser plug-ins like Google translate; or tools like Deepl to help you out.
You’ll also start to get pamphlets through your door - save them, read them if you can, or use a translation app to get the gist of what they are talking about.
Learn about key policy issues in Leuven
Familiarise yourself with some of the key issues that are campaign points in Leuven - the stem test has 25 questions it lists as a starting point - we’ve translated the questions so you can start your research. From swimming pools, to traffic measures and taxes, there are all kinds of local issues that are up for debate.
What were the results of the 2018 elections?
Another way to inform yourself about local politics is to understand your area’s history. You can explore the results of the last flemish communal elections on this website for Leuven or find your commune.
Explore the current city council on the City of Leuven website and see all its members here.
Start discussions with friends and colleagues
Ask friends and colleagues about the local issues and learn about politics. It’s a great way to show interest and curiosity about Belgium. Politics can be a difficult subject to raise, but our advice is to address it from a point of learning and curiosity - asking about historical influences and current events. Everyone will have a bias, though, so it goes without saying that you should speak to a variety of people. 🙂
Did you know you can contact local candidates to ask questions?
The pamphlets and websites will often also have contact information for the local candidates and you can find contact details for all the sitting members of the Leuven council on the link above. So get in touch and ask them questions to help you understand how you want to vote. They may not all be comfortable talking in English about policies, but as you’ll have learned, Flemish people are often modest about their language skills!
The parties running in Leuven in 2024
These are the parties that have nominated candidates in Leuven, based on VRT’s information. They are listed in alphabetical order.
For a full list of candidates and to explore candidates in other municipalities, check out VRT’s voting hub.