Mayor Philippe Close

Philippe Close Mayor City of Brussels

Mayor of Brussels is Philippe Close. He graduated with a degree in law at the University of Brussels. In 2006, he was appointed alderman of Brussels for Tourism and the Personnel. He then became President of the Brussels Regional Tourist Office.

In 2017 he was elected mayor. With program which includes “energizing the image of Brussels”, he expressed his strong support for the development of tourism, which is the basis of the capital’s economy, as well as for the carrying out of a number of cultural events. He was re-elected in 2018 to serve as mayor for a six-year term.

As a graduate in Law at the Université Libre de Bruxelles, he began his career as a parliamentary employee in charge of institutional affairs with Senator Roger Lallemand.

In 1999, he was hired by Elio Di Rupo, at the Institut Emile Vandervelde, the study centre of the Parti Socialiste (PS). In 2000, he became his spokesperson and in 2001 he joined the team of Freddy Thielemans, Mayor of the City of Brussels, as Head of Cabinet.

In 2006, Philippe Close participated for the first time in the municipal elections and was elected. He became Alderman of Staff and Tourism. Since the 2012 elections, he has also been in charge of the finances of the City.

In 2009, Philippe Close was elected member of Parliament of the Brussels Capital Region, where he was chairman of the Social Affairs Committee. In 2013, he was appointed group leader of the PS.

In June 2017, he became Mayor of the City of Brussels. In order to fully devote himself to his task, he resigned as a member and group leader of the Brussels Parliament. At the end of the legislature, on 14 October 2018, he was re-elected as Mayor for the next 6 years.

In his private life Philippe Close loves rugby and music. He also has two children.