Flemish green leader quits
Meyrem Almaci is resigning as leader of the Flemish green party Groen. Almaci has led the party since 2014. She was re-elected as party leader in 2019 but it wasn’t a convincing victory. She has now decided that somebody else will lead the Flemish greens that form part of PM De Croo’s federal coalition government. In Flanders the greens are on the opposition benches.
Participation in the federal government was not unexpected after the party made progress across northern Belgium in the 2019 regional and federal elections.
But Almaci’s slender victory in the most recent leadership battle showed she could not count on overwhelming support from the green rank and file.
In recent days, and following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the greens have had to backtrack on one of their key promises: to phase out nuclear power. It’s been enshrined in law since the noughties and the last remaining nuclear reactors were supposed to be shut down by 2025, but with great uncertainty now surrounding energy supplies the federal government with green support decided to grant a reprieve.
