Ixelles and Forest to have a Green mayor for the first time

The die is cast in Ixelles. After hours of negotiations, the Ecolo-Groen party officially formed the majority together with the PS-sp.a tandem (Socialist Party-Socialist Party Differently) through a signed agreement.

For the first time in history, a member of the Green party will occupy the top position in Ixelles, traditionally ruled by liberals from the Reformist Movement (MR). Ecolo-Groen’s Christos Doulkeridis will replace MR’s Dominique Dufourny as bourgmestre or mayor of Ixelles.

With 33.05% of votes yielding 16 seats in the Ixelles council, Ecolo-Groen won the highest number of votes in yesterday’s communal elections. The party also gained 5 more seats compared to the last elections in 2012.

Aside from Ixelles, Forest will also have its first Green mayor in history. Ecolo-Groen dominated in the elections with 25.26% of votes, but nearly got pushed out of the majority during negotiations.

Following the deliberations, Ecolo-Groen finally succeeded in forming a coalition with the Reformist Movement (MR) and the Humanist Democratic Center (cdH). Ecolo’s head candidate Stéphane Roberti will take over as bourgmestre of Forest after Marc-Jean Ghyssels of the Socialist Party (PS).

Meanwhile, Ecolo-Groen’s Olivier Deleuze will stay on as bourgmestre of Watermael-Boitsfort following another green victory in the commune. The ecologists will continue working with MR-GM (Reformist Movement-Gestion Municipale).

Aside from conquering three communes in the Brussel region, the green party also advances from the minority to the majority in several communes including Anderlecht, Berchem-Sainte-Agathe, Brussels City, Koekelberg, and Uccle.