Recent polling in Belgium suggests that a majority of people believe that Princess Elisabeth should succeed her father in the next 10 years.
A survey commissioned by top Belgian media outlets—including HLN, VTM NEWS, RTL and Le Soir—polled people on their thoughts about the various members of the Belgian Royal Family, and 43% believe that the Duchess of Brabant should succeed King Philippe in the next 10 years.
Meanwhile, 32% believe that she should succeed sooner. If she does succeed in 10 years’ time, she’ll be 31 years old at the time of her accession. Princess Elisabeth will be the first Belgian queen regnant in the country’s history.
The ‘De Grote Poll — Koningshuis’ showed that respondents felt that her strongest point is that she comes across as natural. Sixty-five percent of people felt this way; and she scored higher than King Philippe, who scored 42% in this area.
After 10 years on the throne, the polling found that many people still find the Belgian king awkward despite thinking he’s doing a good job as monarch. His daughter’s scores were higher among the older population than her fellow young people.
Princess Elisabeth also scored a 54% for Belgians finding her compassionate and involved, though it might be noted that her score is lower than that of her father’s in this regard, and it may be due to her young age and educational responsibilities.
The future queen is not undertaking regular royal duties while studying, only attending state and ceremonial events like National Day celebrations, weddings and coronation events over the past year.
After a stint in the Royal Military Academy, she is currently studying at Lincoln College, Oxford.
Queen Mathilde, meanwhile, scored fantastic results. Seventy percent of people found that she has added value to King Philippe’s reign; and 68% think that she’s left her own mark in these past 10 years.
