Mayor Bart De Wever invites all parties for exploratory talks on Monday afternoon (Antwerp)

Antwerp mayor Bart De Wever (N-VA) will start his exploratory talks with the elected parties on Monday afternoon. Yet it already seems clear that the next Antwerp coalition will consist of N-VA and Vooruit.

With the new legislation, De Wever has two weeks to reach a provisional agreement. This can only be concluded successfully if the majority parties also sign the nomination papers of the aldermen. The Antwerp mayor made it clear in his speech on Sunday that he was listening to the concerns of his current coalition partner Vooruit.

De Wever will invite the representatives of the elected parties one by one from Monday afternoon. This is usually from largest to smallest. The order will depend on availability. So he will start with PVDA. Afterwards, representatives from Vooruit, Groen, Vlaams Belang and CD&V are expected. In 2018, a party delegation consisted of four people. Forward party leader Kathleen Van Brempt has already made it clear that she will lead the negotiations. She will probably be accompanied by former mayor Patrick Janssens.

If De Wever is unable to reach an agreement with a coalition partner within these two weeks, the initiative will go to the second largest party: PVDA. He will then get another two weeks. The options are limited for D’Haese. A progressive coalition with Vooruit and Groen does not have a majority. N-VA is not an option. This round of negotiations is likely to fail. Then it is Vooruit’s turn to continue the discussions with N-VA.

N-VA and Vooruit will probably continue negotiating after the first two weeks in the shelter. They will only have a coffee at D’Haese out of politeness. (svw)