Jean-Claude Van Cauwenberghe (born 28 April 1944 in Charleroi), nicknamed "Van Cau", is a Belgian politician. He is member of the Parti Socialiste (Socialist Party; PS). He was the tenth Minister-President of Wallonia from 4 April 2000 until 30 September 2005. He resigned amid the ICDI affair and was replaced by Elio Di Rupo. He also served as mayor of Charleroi (1983-2000).
Charles Picqué (born 1 November 1948) is a Belgian politician. He is a former Minister-President of the Brussels Capital-Region.After obtaining a master's degree in economics at the Institut d'administration et de gestion at the Louvain School of Management (University of Louvain), he made his first steps in politics in the Brussels municipality of Saint-Gilles, where he has been mayor since 1985.
Deeply concerned by urban issues in general and Brussels urban issues in particular, he has devoted a large part of his political activity to promoting and defending Brussels' role and rights as a full region – at par with the two other regions of Belgium – within the institutional framework of the Belgian state.
When the government of the Brussels-Capital Region was established in 1989, he became his first Minister-President with two mandates that lasted until 1999. In July 2004, he was reappointed to the same position.
In 1999, he was appointed Special Rapporteur for the Federal Government on Policies in support of Major Cities. During his mandate as Minister of the Economy and Scientific Research – from 2000 to 2003 – he maintained this responsibility, and played a key role in introducing measures to support Belgium's large cities in coping with the specific problems typical of major urban agglomerations.
During his leadership of the Brussels-Capital Region, he has pushed strongly for urban regeneration and social cohesiveness, with a strong emphasis on the areas of the Brussels Region which face the most serious problems.
In 2007, he launched another important project, an International Development Plan for Brussels, or IDP. The initiative involves the complete renewal of ten major sites within the city, and aims to strengthen the role of Brussels as the capital of Europe and as a major European city with a strong international vocation.
In the current negotiations on institutional reform, his main priority is to defend Brussels' status as a full region, to emphasize the fundamental importance of the Brussels economy for Belgium and for the other two regions, and to promote its natural role – as Belgium's only bilingual Region – in improving ties and cohesion between the country's French and Dutch-speaking communities.
Picqué stepped down as Minister-President of the Brussels-Capital Region on 7 May 2013, and was replaced by Rudi Vervoort.
Joëlle F.G.M. Milquet (French: [jɔ.ɛl milkɛ] ; born 17 February 1961) is a Belgian politician from the Humanist Democratic Centre (CDH).
Olivier D. A. Gh. Maingain (born 3 August 1958) is a Belgian francophone politician and former president of DéFI.
Patrick Janssens (born 19 September 1956) is a Belgian former politician. He was a member of the SP.a and the former mayor of the port city Antwerp.
Daniel Ducarme (8 March 1954, Liège – 28 August 2010) was a Belgian politician and former Minister-President of the Brussels-Capital Region.
Patrick Yvonne Hugo Dewael, (Dutch: [ˈpɑtrɪg dəˈʋaːl]; born 13 October 1955) is a liberal Belgian politician. A member of the Flemish Liberals and Democrats (Vlaamse Liberalen en Democraten, VLD), he served as Minister-President of Flanders from 1999 to 2003.
He is the nephew of the late Herman Vanderpoorten and the cousin of Marleen Vanderpoorten, who served as Minister of Education in the Flemish Government led by Dewael. He obtained a degree in law and notariat from the Vrije Universiteit Brussel in Brussels. Dewael served as the President of the Chamber of Representatives from 2019 to 2020 and previously from 2008 to 2010.
Jozef P. A. "Jos" Chabert (16 March 1933 – 9 April 2014) was a Belgian politician born in Etterbeek. He lived the majority of his live in Meise, Belgium. Chabert died on 9 April 2014 in Brussels.
Etienne Adolf Schouppe (born 24 July 1942 in Denderleeuw) is a Belgian politician. He is a member of the Christen-Democratisch en Vlaams party. Before his entry into politics, he was executive manager of the National Railway Company of Belgium. Schouppe was a member of the Belgian Senate from 2003 to 2010 and since 2008 the State Secretary for Mobility. At the local level Schouppe was mayor of Liedekerke for eleven years. In 2010 he retired from politics. In 2010 he was also accused of insider trading for having sold KBC and Dexia shares with special information.
Alain Destexhe (born 19 June 1958) is a Belgian politician. He was a senator from 1995 to 2011, and remained a member of the Brussels Regional Parliament until 2019. Destexhe was a member of the liberal Mouvement Réformateur (MR) and represented Belgium in the World Economic Forum. He was awarded the Prize for Liberty by Nova Civitas in 2006. He was Secretary-General of Médecins Sans Frontières from 1991 to 1995, and President of the International Crisis Group from 1997 to October 1999.In February 2019 Destexhe quit the MR due to a disagreement with the party's course. He created his own party, the Listes Destexhe, which is situated to the right of the MR. According to Destexhe, his list is modeled after the Flemish-nationalist N-VA but without the confederalism.