Alexander De Croo
Alexander De Croo | |
|---|---|
| Born | November 3, 1975 Vilvoorde, Flemish Brabant, Belgium |
| Occupation(s) | Politician, entrepreneur |
| Years active | 1999–present |
| Known for | Prime Minister of Belgium (2020–2025), Deputy Prime Minister (2012–2020) |
| Notable work | Founder of Darts-ip |
Alexander De Croo (; born 3 November 1975) is a Belgian entrepreneur and political figure who held the office of Prime Minister of Belgium between 2020 and 2025. Prior to his premiership, from 2012 until 2020, he served as deputy prime minister under the administrations of Elio Di Rupo, Charles Michel, and Sophie Wilmès. Throughout this tenure, he managed several important ministries: Minister of Pensions (2012–2014), Minister of Development Cooperation (2014–2020), and Minister of Finance (2018–2020). His term as prime minister commenced on 1 October 2020 with the establishment of the De Croo Government, succeeding the minority cabinet led by Wilmès following the 2019 federal elections.
De Croo was born in Vilvoorde and pursued studies in business engineering at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, later obtaining an MBA from Northwestern University. His professional background includes a role at Boston Consulting Group before founding Darts-ip, a firm specializing in intellectual property services, in 2006. Politically, he led the Open Vlaamse Liberalen en Democraten (Open VLD) as party chairman from 2009 to 2012.
After experiencing a significant setback for both himself and Open VLD in the 2024 Belgian federal election, De Croo declared his intention to resign on 9 June 2024. He continued in a caretaker capacity as prime minister until the incoming government headed by Bart De Wever from the N-VA assumed office on 3 February 2025.
Early life and career
Born on 3 November 1975 in Vilvoorde, located in Flemish Brabant, Belgium, Alexander De Croo is the son of politician and Minister of State Herman De Croo and Françoise Desguin. He began his higher education at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel in 1993, completing his degree in Business Engineering by 1998. Subsequently, he earned an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University in 2004. Prior to embarking on his political journey, De Croo worked as a project leader at Boston Consulting Group starting from 1999. In 2006, he established Darts-ip, a company dedicated to serving professionals in intellectual property.
Early political career
De Croo’s entry into politics came in 2009 when he participated in the 2009 European Parliament election in Belgium, garnering over 47,000 votes. On 26 October that year, he declared his candidacy for leadership of the Open Flemish Liberals and Democrats (Open VLD), contending against Marino Keulen and Gwendolyn Rutten, with running mates Vincent Van Quickenborne and Patricia Ceysens. By 12 December, De Croo was elected party president after securing 11,676 votes in the second round—a remarkable accomplishment considering his relatively brief political experience.
Political crisis
Within five months of assuming party leadership, De Croo issued an ultimatum threatening Open VLD’s withdrawal from the governing coalition unless the constitutional conflict regarding voting rights in Brussels-Halle-Vilvoorde was resolved. When no agreement was reached by the deadline, Open VLD exited the government, leading Prime Minister Yves Leterme to announce his resignation—a decision accepted by King Albert II on 26 April 2010. In the subsequent 2010 Senate elections, De Croo attracted over 301,000 votes—the third highest tally within the Dutch-speaking electoral district—and held a senatorial seat until 22 October 2012.
Di Rupo government
On 22 October 2012, De Croo took over from Van Quickenborne as deputy prime minister and Minister of Pensions after Van Quickenborne stepped down to assume the mayoralty of Kortrijk. Later that year, in December, Gwendolyn Rutten was chosen as the new chairwoman of Open VLD.
Michel I and II governments
Following the federal elections in 2014 and the subsequent government formation, De Croo retained his position as deputy prime minister within the Michel I Government. He also assumed responsibility for Development Cooperation, Digital Agenda, Telecommunications, and Postal Services. Daniel Bacquelaine replaced him as Minister of Pensions. This administration officially began its term on 11 October 2014.
During this period, Belgium became the first nation to halt official development aid to Burundi due to violent unrest starting in 2015. In 2017, De Croo committed €25 million through to 2025 toward eliminating African sleeping sickness. Additionally, he played a key role in founding the She Decides initiative, which opposed the reinstatement of the Mexico City Policy by then U.S. President Donald Trump.
In December 2018, after N-VA exited the coalition over disagreements concerning the UN Global Compact for Migration—resulting in a minority Michel II Government—De Croo was appointed Minister of Finance, succeeding Johan Van Overtveldt.
That same month, De Croo participated in the Global Citizen Festival Mandela 100 concert held in Johannesburg, endorsing the #SheIsEqual campaign advocating for women's rights, which successfully secured commitments totaling €780 million.
Part of the Wilmès I and II governments
During Prime Minister Sophie Wilmès' caretaker tenure, De Croo oversaw a financial stimulus package aimed at mitigating the impacts of the COVID-19 crisis and brokered an agreement to rescue Brussels Airlines in 2020. Concurrently, he was elected co-deputy chairman of Open VLD alongside Egbert Lachaert.
Premiership (2020–2025)
On 23 September 2020, King Philippe appointed Alexander De Croo and Paul Magnette (PS) to form a new government. By 30 September, De Croo had succeeded Wilmès as prime minister.
The process of establishing the Belgian Vivaldi government extended longer than anticipated partly due to a controversy involving De Croo’s communications with an Italian adult film actress. Nonetheless, his administration became Belgium’s most gender-diverse executive ever, with women occupying half of the ministerial posts.
In June 2021, De Croo visited the site of the Antwerp building collapse alongside King Philippe and emergency responders.
In February 2022, his cabinet enacted legislation designed to increase labour market flexibility by introducing an optional four-day workweek with longer daily hours subject to employer approval. The law also eased restrictions on late-night working hours.
The government has prioritized raising defense expenditure to 2% of GDP to align with NATO and U.S. expectations—a move that has caused friction within the coalition: right-wing factions support it; environmentalist parties oppose it; socialists remain uncertain.
On 26 November 2022, De Croo and Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib traveled to Ukraine where they met President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and reaffirmed Belgium’s continued assistance.
In November 2023, De Croo characterized Israel’s bombing campaign in Gaza as "disproportionate" while emphasizing Belgium’s neutral stance regarding the conflict. The Israeli government subsequently accused him of "supporting terrorism."
On 26 February 2024, De Croo attended an emergency summit in Paris addressing Ukraine’s situation following setbacks at Avdiivka. The Czech prime minister proposed supplying artillery ammunition to Ukrainian forces. Belgium pledged €200 million toward ammunition support alongside €100 million from the Netherlands. A total of fifteen countries joined this initiative with defense ministers tasked with finalizing arrangements by early March.
Following the 2024 Belgian federal election, De Croo’s party experienced considerable losses. He announced his intention to resign effective 10 June but continued as caretaker prime minister until a successor government was established.
In September 2024, during Pope Francis’s visit to Belgium, both De Croo and King Philippe publicly condemned the Catholic Church amid ongoing sexual abuse scandals. After controversial comments made by the pope regarding abortion during his return flight to Rome, De Croo summoned the Belgian apostolic nuncio to express protest over what he described as unacceptable interference in domestic affairs.
On 3 February 2025, Bart De Wever—the leader of N-VA and mayor of Antwerp—assumed office as prime minister, succeeding De Croo.
Political stance and ideology
De Croo advocates for restricting the Belgian monarch's role to purely symbolic functions, a position shared by the majority of Belgian political leaders and consistent with the practices observed in other Western European constitutional monarchies.
Personal background
He is married to Annik Penders, with whom he has two children. A passionate horse rider, De Croo regularly takes part in equestrian competitions alongside his father; in 2010, he suffered injuries due to a riding accident. He is proficient in Dutch, English, and French—the latter being his mother’s native tongue.
European Union bodies
- Member of the Board of Governors at the European Investment Bank (EIB) by virtue of office (since 2018)
- Board of Governors member at the European Stability Mechanism (since 2018)
Global institutions
- Ex-officio member of the Board of Governors for the African Development Bank (AfDB)
- Ex-officio Board of Governors member at the Asian Development Bank (ADB)
- Member of the Board of Governors at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) by virtue of office (since 2018)
Non-governmental organizations
- Participant in the Europe Policy Group at the World Economic Forum (WEF) since 2017
Awards and distinctions
- Awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of Orange-Nassau in 2023
- Received the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg in 2024
- Honored with First Class of the Order of Prince Yaroslav the Wise on 26 August 2024