1878 Belgian general election

none 1878 Belgian general election Belgium parliamentary 1876 Belgian general election 1876 1880 Belgian general election 1880 66 of the 132 seats in the Chamber of Representatives 67 1878 06 11 yes 150x150px Walthère Frère-Orban Candidate for PM Liberal Party (Belgium) 57 seats 48 72 15 21,283 50.31% 150x150px Jules Malou Candidate for PM Catholic Party (Belgium) 67 seats 18 60 7 20,700 48.94% Government Government after election Malou I Catholic Party (Belgium) Frère-Orban II Liberal Party (Belgium) Partial general elections were held in Belgium on 11 June, 18 June and 15 July 1878.Codebook Constituency-level Elections Archive, 2003Sternberger, D, Vogel, B & Nohlen, D (1969) Die Wahl der Parlamente: Band I: Europa - Erster Halbband, p105 The result was a victory for the Liberal Party, which won 72 of the 132 seats in the Chamber of Representatives and 36 of the 66 seats in the Senate. Voter turnout was 62.5%, although only 56,640 people were eligible to vote. Under the alternating system, elections for the Chamber of Representatives were only held in four out of the nine provinces: Hainaut, Limburg, Liège and East Flanders. Additionally, special elections were held in the arrondissements of Antwerp, Brussels and Kortrijk after these electoral districts got one extra seat due to population growth. They were the first elections with strict guarantees for secret ballots following the law of 9 July 1877, which contributed to the success of the liberals. Results Chamber of Representatives File:Belgian Chamber 1878.svg Won Total +/– Liberal Party 18966 48 72 +15 Catholic Party 17085 18 60 –7 +8 36051 57640 Mackie & Rose,Thomas T. Mackie & Richard Rose (1991) The International Almanac of Electoral History, Macmillan, pp48–49 Sternberger et al. Senate 250px Liberal Party 36 Catholic Party 30 Sternberger et al. Constituencies The distribution of seats among the electoral districts was as follows for the Chamber of Representatives, with the difference compared to the previous election due to population growth:List of members of the Chamber of Representatives (1878) Province Arrondissement Seats Change Antwerp Antwerp 7 +1 Mechelen 3 – Turnhout 3 – Limburg Hasselt 2 – Maaseik 1 – Tongeren 2 – East Flanders Aalst 3 – Oudenaarde 3 – Gent 8 +1 Eeklo 1 – Dendermonde 3 – Sint-Niklaas 3 – West Flanders Bruges 3 – Roeselare 2 – Tielt 2 – Kortrijk 4 +1 Ypres 3 – Veurne 1 – Diksmuide 1 – Ostend 1 – Brabant Leuven 5 – Brussels 14 +1 Nivelles 4 – Hainaut Tournai 4 – Ath 2 – Charleroi 7 +2 Thuin 3 – Mons 5 – Soignies 3 – Liège Huy 2 – Waremme 2 +1 Liège 8 – Verviers 4 +1 Luxembourg Arlon 1 – Marche 1 – Bastogne 1 – Neufchâteau 1 – Virton 1 – Namur Namur 4 – Dinant 2 – Philippeville 2 – 132 +8 References Category:1870s elections in Belgium General Belgium Belgium