Voting is mandatory in Luxembourg for all Luxembourgers and registered foreign voters aged between 18 and 75.
This year, voters will have a choice of 649 candidates across 12 parties or political movements. The CSV, DP, LSAP, Green Party, ADR, Pirates, The Left, Fokus, and Liberté - Fräiheet all have full lists across all four constituencies, while the Communist Party of Luxembourg will enter candidates in three districts. The Conservatives have candidates in two districts and Volt has entered candidates in the southern constituency and in the eastern district.
With 12 parties entering this year’s parliamentary race, have Luxembourg voters ever had this much choice before?
Certainly this is the most choice in recent history. The official site élections.public.lu covers statistics as far back as 1994. In the past, new parties would appear from time to time, but have since faded into obscurity. In 2018, for example, the “Demokratie” citizens’ initiative put candidates forward in the central and southern constituencies, but won just 0.35% of the vote.
In 2013, the “Partei fir integral Demokratie” (party for integral democracy), founded by Jean Colombera, entered candidates in all four districts, but failed to win any seats. In 1994, four right-wing parties entered the election - the “National Movement”, GLS, Nomp and PRP - none of which still exist today.
Are there many new faces among the 649 candidates?
Some may be unfamiliar, but for the most part, the candidates will be well known to the electorate. Seventeen members of the current government will seek re-election, while 57 of the 60 MPs currently sitting in the Chamber have indicated their intention to extend their mandate. The CSV’s Aly Kaes and Jean-Marie Halsdorf, and The Left’s Nathalie Oberweis will not stand as MPs again. Halsdorf said he wished to step down in order to spend more time in his role as mayor of Pétange.
A number of MPs have a double mandate, with 44 occupying posts in local government as well as in the Chamber. 11 of them also serve as mayors of their respective municipalities.
This year there are fewer famous faces from the media and sports sectors, with the exceptions of former swimmer Raphaël Stacchiotti and former tennis pro Mandy Minella, who are both candidates for the DP.
Other familiar faces not represented in the Chamber
One well-known face in politics is the former MEP and CSV president Frank Engel, who co-founded the Fokus party last year and announced his intention to run as lead candidate in October. Communist Party of Luxembourg (KPL) president Ali Ruckert, who has held the position of editor-in-chief of the “Lëtzebuerger Vollek” daily paper since 1995, is also standing in the elections. The Conservatives founder and former ADR member Joé Thein is also a familiar face in Luxembourgish politics.
Volt is a relatively new party made up of less familiar names, championing causes including a cohesive Europe and research-based policies. Liberté - Fräiheet, although a new name on the ballot paper, is technically already represented in the Chamber by founder and MP Roy Reding, after the latter exited the ADR earlier this year.
