The Belgian Party of Labour shows how to successfully build a left-wing political movement

By Jürgen Klute

Given the current uncertainties and global threats, it is of central importance for the Left in Europe not only to focus on domestic issues, but also to cooperate and exchange experiences at European and international level, argues the General Secretary of the Belgian Party of Labour, Peter Mertens (PDVA-PTB – Patij van de Arbeid van België – Parti du Travail des Belgique).

Mertens will also speak at the 8th Congress of the European Left Party (EL), taking place in Brussels from 17 to 19 April, as a representative of the most successful left-wing party in Belgium at present. Since 2014, the PDVA-PTB has increased its number of seats in the Belgian Parliament in every election. In the latest Belgian poll from March 2026, the PDVA-PTB was the strongest party in the Brussels region with 25.5 per cent. In Wallonia, it achieved 17 per cent, and in the traditionally more right-wing north of Belgium, it achieved 9.8 per cent in the poll.

Mertens attributes this success to the fact that the party has a clear profile, yet is also flexible and – unlike many traditional left-wing parties – not dogmatic. The PDVA-PTB advocates for a socialist society based on a Marxist analysis.

When selecting the political issues to focus on in the political debate, the party prioritises the pressing concerns of working people rather than putting programmatic positions and their implementation at the forefront. Because that is another element of the party’s self-image: it aims to give the working population a voice on the political stage. Mertens also sees this as a key difference from the social democratic parties in Belgium, the Parti Socialiste (PS) in Wallonia and the ‘Vooruit’ (Forward) party in the Flemish-speaking part of Belgium.

Peter Mertens | Foto: PVDA

Such an understanding of politics, Mertens continues, requires being present where people work and in the residential neighbourhoods of working people, and engaging in dialogue with them. Only in this way can one understand what their everyday problems are and work together with them on political demands to solve these problems.

For Mertens, this is also a central element in the struggle against the right-wing policies of various governments in Belgium. The right-wing conservative N-VA (New Flemish Alliance) and the right-wing liberal MR (Reform Movement) sit together in the federal government. In Flanders, the far-right ‘Vlaams Belang’ (Flemish Interest) sits in opposition. The latter has been subject to the ‘cordon sanitaire’ for over 30 years. This means that no other democratic party cooperates with Vlaams Belang at any political level. And at the very least, the Walloon media report on the party only when absolutely necessary, but do not give it a public platform. The N-VA is the strongest political force in Flanders and currently holds the office of Belgian Prime Minister in the person of Bart De Wever. Vlaams Belang is hot on the heels of the N-VA in the polls.

In the fight against the far right, according to Mertens, the PDVA-PTB no longer relies solely on ideological opposition to right-wing parties. Instead, it seeks dialogue with workers. Many of them are politically disoriented today and therefore susceptible to right-wing demagoguery and racism. In these discussions, they try to identify the political causes of their problems and develop political alternatives, without, for example, making migrants scapegoats for an unfair tax system or poor housing policy. “The far right teaches people to look down on others. We show them the real causes of a system that is deadlocked and fundamentally unjust,” explains Mertens.

The roots of the PDVA-PTB lie not, like those of traditional left-wing parties, in the traditional labour movement, but in the Belgian student movement of the 1960s. In 1979, the PDVA-PTB emerged from this movement as a pan-Belgian party active in Flanders, Wallonia and Brussels. Due to Belgium’s multilingualism, parties are generally organised at a regional level and according to linguistic communities. In addition to the PDVA-PTB, the Communist Party of Belgium (KPB/PCB), founded in 1921 but now largely insignificant, also sees itself as a pan-Belgian party.

Initially, the party was critical of parliamentary work and was strongly influenced by Maoist ideas. However, it has since moved away from this tradition. The main impetus for this shift was its electoral defeat in 2003. This led to a fundamental reorientation of its working methods and communication: it prioritised cooperation with workers in factories, public administrations, hospitals, etc., as well as grassroots work and participation in social struggles. This reorientation was confirmed at the 2008 party congress.

The party’s growth and electoral successes confirm that this reorientation was the right decision. The PDVA-PTB enjoys particularly strong support in Wallonia and in the working-class districts of Brussels. In the 2014 elections, the party won two seats, securing its first entry into the Belgian federal parliament. In the 2019 elections, it won 12 seats, and in the 2024 elections, it increased its number of seats again to 15 out of a total of 150 seats in the Belgian federal parliament.

In the 2019 European elections, the party won one seat for the first time; in 2024, it won two seats. However, one of the two MEPs has since left the party. Both MEPs belong to The Left group in the European Parliament.

The party’s key demands include restoring the retirement age to 65, the fight for a genuine peace policy and against the militarisation of society, as well as a fairer tax policy through the introduction of a millionaire’s tax.

Raoul Hedebouw has been chairman of the PDVA-PTB since 2021. The party currently has around 28,000 members. In addition to the federal and regional parliaments, it is also represented in the municipal councils of many Belgian towns and municipalities.