Senate elections were held in Belgium on 27 September 1851.[1] The snap elections (solely for the Senate) were called by Royal Order on 4 September, due to a lack of support among the wealthy senators for the introduction of an inheritance tax pushed for by the liberal Minister of Finance Walthère Frère-Orban.
The Liberal Party and Catholics won 27 seats each.[1] Voter turnout was 64.0%, although only 79,296 people (1.8% of the population) were eligible to vote.[1]
Results
edit| Party | Seats | |
|---|---|---|
| Catholics | 27 | |
| Liberal Party | 27 | |
| Total | 54 | |
| Source: Sternberger et al. | ||