ABSTRACT
In West European comparative perspective, Belgium is indeed an exceptional case in terms of coalition formation: high or even record values are reached regarding the classic determinants of government formation complexity, the structure and features of the cabinet formation process and its outcomes. These core features of the bargaining process affect the life of coalitions, in terms of government duration, intra-cabinet conflictuality, policy inertia and ineffectiveness. Most of the independent and dependent variables of the chain of coalition formation, Belgium scores record-breaking values, or at least is one of the top three “performers”. A new prolonged formation impasse may show that the centrifugal Belgian federal system does not function anymore as a regime capable of legitimately governing “two separate democracies”, and should be dumped all together. In fact, the difficulties of forming and maintaining Belgian coalition governments have affected the effectiveness of their policy outputs and outcomes.
