Senate (Belgium)

Senate Dutch: de Senaat French: le Sénat German: der Senat
Type
Type	Upper house
Leadership
President	Valerie De Bue, MR since 25 July 2024
Structure
Seats	60 (10 of which are co-opted senators)
Political groups	Government (demissionary) (37)   MR (7)[a]   PS (7)   CD&V (5)   Ecolo (5)   VLD (5)   Groen (4)   Vooruit (4) Opposition (23)   N-VA (9)   VB (7)   PVDA-PTB (5)   LE (2)
Length of term	5 years
Elections
Voting system	Indirect election
Last election	9 June 2024
Next election	On or before 2029
Meeting place
Website
senate.be

The Senate (Dutch: Senaat [səˈnaːt] ^ⓘ; French: Sénat [sena] ^ⓘ; German: Senat [zeˈnaːt] ^ⓘ) is one of the two chambers of the bicameral Federal Parliament of Belgium, the other being the Chamber of Representatives. It is considered to be the "upper house" of the Federal Parliament.^[1]

Created in 1831 as a chamber fully equal to the Chamber of Representatives, the Senate has undergone several reforms in the past, most notably in 1993 and 2014. The 2014 elections were the first without a direct election of senators. Instead, the new Senate is composed of members of community and regional parliaments and co-opted members. It is a chamber of the communities and regions and serves as a platform for discussion and reflection about matters between these federated entities. The Senate today plays a minor role in the federal legislative process. However, the Senate, together with the Chamber, has full competence for the Constitution and legislation on the organization and functioning of the Federal State and the federated entities. Since the reform of 2014, it holds about ten plenary sessions a year.

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