Philippe Close (PS) took his vows as Brussels mayor early on Thursday afternoon, in front of Brussels President Minister Rudi Vervoort.
At 46, Mr Close is the youngest Brussels mayor, at least since it incorporated Laeken, Neder-Over-Heembeek and Haren in 1921.
Before taking his vows, Philippe Close said goodbye to his colleagues at the Brussels Parliament, where he was head of the PS. The groups that make up the Brussels hemicycle paid homage to him when the votes were cast. This included the President of the Assembly Charles Picqué (PS), with whom he is very close politically.
Philippe Close became a Brussels MP in 2009. His mandate as an MP finished on Thursday, and his last act was to submit a resolution allowing extra-national immigrants living in Brussels to vote in regional elections.
Despite a lot of criticism about this, Philippe Close has said he strongly believes in this democratic fight. For him it means “recognising people who contribute to the development of our region as citizens”. The ex-regional MP has said he hopes the debate around it will calm down one day, so it can be discussed legitimately.
Caroline Désir’s vote is the PS celebrating Philippe Close’s work throughout his parliamentary career and giving him encouragement for his time as mayor of Brussels.
