US election night in pictures! Watch party at the Châtelain Brussels hotel attracts 500 partygoers

Well it was certainly a night of suspense for the crowds of revellers at Belgium’s biggest election night party at Le Châtelain Brussels Hotel on Tuesday evening.

Attendees followed the rolling news on the big screens. With a largely pro-Harris audience in the house, there were scattered cheers whenever an encouraging result for the Democrats was posted.

But as the traditionally Red states reported first, Donald Trump went into an early lead for the all-important 270 electoral college votes.

It was only after the party closed that the results for the first swing states indicated that the former president was pulling ahead in the fiercely-contested race. Trump turned out to be the unexpected comeback kid after he was returned to power with a final score of 295 vs 226 in favour of the Republicans.

Earlier in the evening, the depth of interest in American politics among Brussels’ international community was demonstrated in the evening line-up of analysis and debate. Moderator Jerry Sheridan, director of the Brussels center of American University, presided and chipped in with his expert knowledge of US and European politics.

Tackling the issue of why the election was so close were local consultants Becky Slack and Gregg Svingen, while academics Zachary Selden and Bruno Lété considered the implications of the election on Europe. They were followed by a debate between Democrat representative Stephanie Quintao and her Republican counterpart Aleksander Pruitt.

The audience pitched in with their questions via Slido that were projected onto a big screen. Unfortunately, the acoustics of the room were not able to compete with the chatter going on around the bar, prompting apologies to everyone from organisers.

An exuberant crowd of around 500 filled two floors of the five-star hotel that was suitably dressed in red, white and blue for the occasion. As well as a smattering of Belgian and European politicians, they included a large press corps with camera and video shoots peppering proceedings.

The band Soul Strings entertained the audience with rock and pop classics while they waited patiently for the first exit polls. Another distraction was the presence of Democrat vice-president Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump in the form of life-size cut-out versions. Naturally, they were paraded around the room for a surfeit of selfies. Although the latter finished the night in a crumpled state, he did not suffer the fate of his predecessor Barack Obama. As the 2008 election night party closed, the cut-out of the newly-elected president surreptitiously left the building under the arm of an anonymous partygoer!

An enthusiastic team of journalism students from Erasmus University College worked the entrance desk and cloakrooms. Organisers thank them for their cheerful and competent contribution.

Commenting after the election result, Stephanie Quintao said: Although extremely disappointing for Democrats Abroad, we also saw many Americans coming out and supporting each other in Brussels and promising to stay engaged in the work towards the future we want to see. As VP Harris stated, we owe loyalty to the constitution and not the president or party. We’re staying organised and engaged to work towards dignity, for rights, for a more welcoming society where we look at people as neighbours and friends.”

Republican Aleksander Pruitt added: "It was a great evening with wonderful people. I felt very welcome. As for the red tsunami, it is a clear mandate to get an economy that works for ordinary hard working Americans. They want to make America affordable again." 

The watch party was organised by @seven international community with support from The Bulletin, the Press Club Brussels Europe and the American Club of Brussels (ACB).

Photos: ©Gabriel Destivelle (Gl production & Damien Maguire/Image Digital

Scroll down for more photos from the night ©Gabriel Destivelle (Gl productionl):

Photos: ©Gabriel & Damien Maguire/Image Digital