Open Vlaamse Liberalen En Democraten

Open Vlaamse Liberalen En Democraten

Open Vlaamse Liberalen en Democraten (Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats), commonly known as Open Vld and also simply as the VLD, is a Flemish liberal political party in Belgium, created in 1992 from the former Party for Freedom and Progress (PVV) and a few other politicians from other parties. The party led the government for three cabinets under Guy Verhofstadt from 1999 until March 2008. VLD most recently formed the Federal Government (the so-called purple governments from June 2003 through 2007 with the Flemish sp.a-Spirit cartel, the Francophone Socialist Party (PS) and the Francophone Reformist Movement (MR).

In the Flemish Parliament, the VLD formed a coalition government with sp.a-Spirit and Christian Democratic and Flemish (CD&V) from after the 2004 regional election until the 2009 regional election. VLD has been a member of the Leterme I Government formed on 22 March 2008, the Van Rompuy I Government formed on 2 January 2009, the Leterme II Government formed on 24 November 2009 and the Di Rupo I Government formed on 6 December 2011.

Ideologically, the VLD started as an economic liberal, somewhat Thatcherite party under its founder, Guy Verhofstadt. The VLD rapidly became more centrist and gave up much of its free market approach, partly under the influence of Verhofstadt's political scientist brother Dirk Verhofstadt. Party chairman Bart Somers called in November 2006 for a "revolution" within the party, saying that "a liberal party," like the VLD, "can be only progressive and social."

From 2000 to 2004, during the second period of its participation in the Belgian federal government and under Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt, the VLD allegedly lost most of its ideological appeal. Several of its thinkers such as (former member) Boudewijn Bouckaert, president of Nova Civitas, heavily criticised the party. Many others resented the priority it placed on the 'Belgian compromise', which enabled the French Community Socialist Party to gain a dominant position in the formulation of Belgian federal government policy.

In 2004 the VLD teamed up with the minority liberal party Vivant for both the Flemish and European elections. VLD-Vivant lost the elections to arch rivals CD&V and the Flemish Bloc. The VLD fell from second to third place among the Flemish political parties, slipping narrowly behind the sp.a-Spirit cartel. Internal feuds, the support for electoral rights for immigrants and an unsuccessful economic policy were seen as the main reasons for its election defeat.

On 19 June 2004 the VLD successfully negotiated a regional coalition government with CD&V and the New Flemish Alliance (N-VA), the Christian Democrats and moderate nationalists, and with the social-democratic sp.a-Spirit. In a federal cabinet reshuffle in July 2004, VLD chairman Karel De Gucht replaced Louis Michel (Reformist Movement) as minister for Foreign Affairs. Former Flemish Minister-President Bart Somers is the new party chairman.