Ghent (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Ghent University will elect a new rector on April 30, 2025. 53534 people can vote online until tomorrow, April 30, 2025. Candidates Rik Van de Walle and Petra De Sutter need support from 3 of 4 groups including 40,000 students.
Ghent University will choose a new rector on April 30th, 2025. 53,534 people can still vote online until tomorrow, April 30, 2025. The 2 candidates are Rik Van de Walle and Petra De Sutter. A candidate needs a majority vote from 3 out of 4 groups: professors, academic staff, other employees, and students.
The professors have the most influence, especially if there’s no clear winner. Some professors want change, which could help De Sutter. However, some worry about her political background as a Green Party minister. Both candidates have similar plans for the university, so professors have a difficult decision to make.
Will students decide Ghent University’s next rector?
Students are the largest voting group at Ghent University, with over 40,000 eligible voters. Officials mentioned that students are interested, and many attended a recent debate and watched it online. Both candidates answered questions from students. If no candidate gets enough votes, there will be more rounds of voting. The professors will have the final say in those rounds.
Some students are critical of Van de Walle’s policies, especially on issues like the approach to the Palestinian situation and inappropriate behaviour. But some students support him. The student group is very diverse. The other 2 voting groups are smaller, but they’re important because they can quickly decide the election.
The election could be decided after just one round of voting. The university’s budget could influence the election, as Van de Walle has been asking for more money from the Flemish government, but hasn’t gotten much.
Officials mentioned that if someone gets a lot of votes from other groups, they can still lose if they don’t get enough votes from the professors. They said that the goal is to choose a leader that everyone agrees on, starting with the professors.
If no one wins in the first round, there’s a second round. The candidate with the most votes from the professors gets to be in this round. They need to get the most votes from the professors and at least 2 of the 3 groups (professors, staff, and students). If they don’t get enough votes, there’s a third round.
In the 3rd round, they only need to get the most votes from the professors and one other group. If no one wins after all this, the Board of Directors will decide what to do next. They might start the election over or choose someone to lead for a little while. All of this will happen in the first half of May 2025, and each round of voting lasts two days.
