Belgian royal children vote for the first time

The children of King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of the Belgians have voted for the first time.

Princess Elisabeth, 22, Prince Gabriel, 20, Prince Emmanuel, 18, and Princess Eleonore, 16, were all required to vote in the elections held on 9 June.

According to Belgian royal reporter Wim Dehandschutter, the royal children waited in line with everyone else at the polling centre in Laeken for the European election and cast their votes electronically.

🇧🇪 ELECTIONS IN BELGIUM

👑 Children of Belgian King Philippe/Queen Mathilde -among them Crown Princess Elisabeth- voted for the 1st time.

👉 They had to join the queue like everyone else (40’)
👉 They voted electronically in Laeken
👉 King and Queen don’t vote to remain neutral pic.twitter.com/E8LGZptHXI

— [Wim Dehandschutter] (@WDehandschutter) June 9, 2024

Princess Elisabeth barely missed voting in the previous election as she was not yet 18 when Belgians went to the polls in 2019, according to Dehandschutter.

Although Princess Eleonore is only 16, the voting age was lowered to 16 for European elections, meaning she had to cast her vote in this year’s election.

In Belgium, voting in elections is compulsory for adults. King Philippe and Queen Mathilde are exempt from voting due to their roles and the need to remain neutral.

Philippe’s parents, King Albert and Queen Paola, are no longer exempt and have to vote in the elections like normal citizens.

Liechtenstein and Luxembourg are the other two European countries with monarchies where voting is mandatory. Members of the Grand Ducal Family of Luxembourg have also been spotted heading to the polls in the past.