Jef Huyghe was dismissed as general manager this year by the municipal council of Heuvelland. He took part in the municipal elections on October 13 as an independent on the N-VA Plus list, but was not elected. Huyghe did file an objection with the Council for Electoral Disputes. “My objection is more than 30 pages,” Huyghe previously stated.
Mayor Wieland De Meyer (Municipal Interests). — © Thijs Pattyn
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“It concerns election irregularities, such as the presence of political figures in counting stations, the disappearance of ballot papers according to PV, suspicious actions by members of polling stations and the organization of elections that allows manipulation. That is not normal and unworthy of a democracy. I am concerned about the public interest and the wider population, which is why I am raising this objection.”
Based on the election results of October 13, Mayor Wieland De Meyer could succeed himself. His Gemeentebelangen party narrowly retained the absolute majority. “Today we took note of the ruling of the Council for Electoral Disputes,” De Meyer said in an initial response. “Based on a number of procedural matters, the Council believes that the elections in Heuvelland should be annulled and new elections should therefore follow.” (Read more below the photo)
Mayor Wieland De Meyer (Municipal Interests). — © Thijs Pattyn
“Anyone who knows the file and the situation knows that nothing fundamentally went wrong. But because the Council does not rule out possible errors, it is still decided that new elections must be held,” says De Meyer. “To be clear: according to the ruling, the political parties or the municipal council are not to blame. Fraud or errors have not been proven, only uncertainty about the operation of polling and counting stations means that elections must be repeated, according to the Council. We will not comment further on this now, and will first analyze this statement. This ruling can still be appealed to the Council of State. We will determine whether we do that in the coming weeks.”
Pending the analysis, De Meyer does not want to make any further statements.
What should happen next?
After the national elections of June 9 and the local ballot box of October 13, the residents of the West Flemish Heuvelland will soon be able to go to the polls for the third time in more than six months. However, if the decision of the Council for Electoral Disputes is not reversed. What will happen in the Westhoek in the next days and weeks?
Not that it has been established that there is fraud. But a number of irregularities during the local elections in Heuvelland could possibly have influenced the result. And so everything must be done again, the Council for Electoral Disputes ruled. A present under the Christmas tree.
However, it is not yet entirely certain that there will actually be new elections. After all, there is still an appeal possible against the ruling. You have to within eight days are submitted. At the Council of State. The court will then have a decision in accordance with the new Flemish electoral decree 60 days to speak out about the dispute.
The Council of State can reject the judgment of the Council for Electoral Disputes, and then nothing will stand in the way of the appointment of the new mayor – by the Flemish government. But of course ratification of the decision is also possible. And then there have to be new elections within 50 days to follow. Pending the ruling – if there is an appeal – the resigning mayor will remain in office.
Heuvelland is the only municipality where the elections have to be repeated. The Council for Electoral Disputes has so far rejected other complaints. By the way, all complaints have already been resolved. That had to be done by the end of the year. However, a number of judgments still have to be written, the chairman of the Council, professor Herman Matthijs (UGent), indicated on Tuesday. This is the case for complaints about Zelzate, Ghent, Tielt-Winge and Hoogstraten. Complaints are still possible for merged municipalities – which were given an extra month for everything. (fem)
Audit Flanders
Even before this objection to the Council for Electoral Disputes, an investigation into fraud by Audit Flanders stirred local politics. During the last meeting of the municipal council before October 13, the entire opposition resigned because they were not given access to and no public debate on the audit report before the ballot box. (Read more below the photo)
The resignation of the entire opposition during the last municipal council before October 13. — © Thijs Pattyn
“After the report from Audit Flanders, it is once again a hard conclusion that the court also considers the election complaint to be well-founded,” responds Nathan Duhayon, the leader of the largest opposition party CD&V. “I assume that the Council of Electoral Dispute does not simply annul an election. This judgment must be taken seriously and cannot simply be minimized. This damages the image of our beautiful Heuvelland and ensures a longer period of unstable governance. The municipal operations and files are available on holdwith the risk of missed opportunities. The start of the legislature is postponed and that does not benefit the municipality. It is a shame that residents have to go to the polls again, but fair and objective elections are the foundation of a healthy democracy. CD&V continues to hammer home the same nail: Heuvelland deserves good and correct governance. We look to the future and want to help our municipality move forward positively, in whatever role that may be.”
Nathan Duhayon (CD&V), De Meyer's challenger for the sash. — © Thijs Pattyn
The town hall of Heuvelland. — © Thijs Pattyn
