Dermine and Dolimont, the red and the blue in the Black Country

Adrien Dolimont joined the Wallonian government of Elio Di Rupo (PS) in January 2022 to take over the Budget portfolio, previously held by Jean-Luc Crucke, who switched from MR to Engagés, leading to strained relations with MR President Georges-Louis Bouchez.

Thomas Dermine (PS) accuses the federal government of “laxity”: “Orders to leave the territory, concerning criminals, must be enforced.”

The victory of the tie

After the June 2024 elections, Dermine and Dolimont, heads of their respective lists in the Charleroi-Thuin district, enter the Walloon Parliament. But their fates take opposite trajectories.

Sent back to the opposition, socialist Thomas Dermine quickly leaves the Walloon hemicycle, while the liberal moves into the majority before taking over the regional government.

On the day of his swearing-in as a deputy, Adrien Dolimont opts for a beige suit and a shirt in muted tones with discreet whimsy. His party president, a stickler for suit-and-tie attire, quips, “Did you come back from a safari?” The young Carolo, who didn’t care much for ties, eventually adopts the traditional dress code — like Thomas Dermine, who had done so long ago.

The lifelong liberal, the converted socialist

Hailing from the green municipality of Ham-sur-Heure-Nalinnes, where he got into politics before turning 18, Adrien Dolimont has sat on the city council since 2006, poised to succeed the (and rival) MR mayor, Yves Binon. True to the family’s liberal tradition — his grandfather Marcel Nicaise was the mayor of the town — Dolimont never wavered in his political label.

A born and bred Carolo, Thomas Dermine, born into an environment where Marxism was seen as worse than a disease, likely had nothing socialist about him in his youth. In Charleroi, the Reds had sometimes faced severe criticism for their governance.

Airport of Charleroi: “We had an agreement, but Bouchez sabotaged everything,” protests Thomas Dermine.

To say that Thomas Dermine was very right-wing before joining the PS would be caricatural. Nurtured in Christian democracy by his mother and former PSC Minister (now Engagés) Philippe Maystadt, it’s said that he followed his former ULB professor, Paul Magnette, to the PS on May Day, Labor Day, to convert to socialism — a fortuitous coincidence.

The graduates

A common bond between the two men is their excellent education. Adrien Dolimont is a civil engineer and a doctor of engineering sciences, a graduate of the University of Mons. Thomas Dermine, on the other hand, attended the Solvay Brussels School before obtaining a master’s degree in political science from ULB and further studying at Harvard.

Professionally, Dolimont founded his engineering consultancy and photovoltaic installation firm, while Dermine joined McKinsey, a consultancy known for not placing much value on left-wing ideas.

City’s representative, countryside’s elected

In the local elections of October 2024, both men ran. Thomas Dermine secured the second-highest vote on the PS list in Charleroi, succeeding Paul Magnette as mayor. Adrien Dolimont achieved the best results in his list and municipality. Elected mayor, he had to declare himself “prevented” to retain his seat in the Walloon government headquarters, although he continues serving as a city councilor.

Thomas Dermine, future mayor of Charleroi, surpassed in popular votes by Paul Magnette and followed by Julie Patte.

One hails from the city, where the center was once blue and the suburbs red. The other comes from the countryside, in a very blue, very liberal municipality, where Thomas Dermine’s parents have lived for twenty years. In a territory where certain upscale neighborhoods that developed in the 80s and 90s are jokingly dubbed “Inamiland” — Inami number is the identifier for doctors — due to the abundance of specialist doctors residing there.

The two strong figures

Their positions make them the powerhouses of the region. Dermine heads the PS Federation of Charleroi. While Dolimont has to work with Denis Ducarme, a federal deputy leading the Hainaut MR, it’s easier for the two long-time acquaintances to come to agreements, as Dermine is not at the left of his party, and Dolimont not to the right. They understand each other. “They sniff each other out,” a source tells us. However, appointing chairpersons within the region’s intercommunales faced difficulties following the local elections.

Annoyance and camaraderie

Thomas Dermine wishes Adrien Dolimont would work more for their shared region, as is often done by other ministers of the Walloon government, but the liberal, as minister-president, aims to embody the entire Wallonia. The Charleroi mayor also disapproves of how, in his view, the executive managed by Dolimont treats large cities, particularly regarding the economic conditions related to the Oxygen plan — a Walloon government initiative to financially assist municipalities. Dolimont, in turn, is frustrated by cities governed by socialists, where, in his opinion, they give the impression that money is free. He sometimes forgets that liberals and Engagés also govern major cities.

Yet, when Thomas meets Adrien, a certain camaraderie can be observed. This was evident recently, during a joint conference at the Mipim in Cannes, a real estate professionals’ exhibition. With small jokes and sly smiles, the two men did not clash, but rather got along.

They probably understand that they each have a political career to pursue, that life is long, and they will likely cross paths again. And possibly forge many agreements together.