Belgium shifted to the right in Sunday’s election, but an expected extremist landslide didn’t happen.
The far-right separatist Vlaams Belang party, which had led the polls in recent months, grabbed 21 percent of Flemish votes Sunday — but failed to overtake its Flemish conservative rivals New Flemish Alliance (N-VA), which became Belgium’s biggest party with around 25 percent of Flemish votes.
Belgium’s mainstream had been bracing for a far-right win in the north, with voters endorsing a plan to break up the country in just a few years and Vlaams Belang riding a wave of European far-right forces doing well across member countries in the June 6-9 EU election.
Imagine having a country the size of a postage stamp and still pretending you can’t possibly get along with the town next door
It’s quite a busy postage stamp
But, uh, yeah, that’s Europe for you. The fact that the EU works at all is a stunning historical upset. Long may it continue
I see no issues with independence. Independence within a union is the way to go. If the Flemish and Wallons want their independence then that’s fine as long as they remain in the EU.