Around 373 million citizens across the 27 member states of the European Union are eligible to vote between June 6-9 in the elections to the European Parliament.
What is the European Parliament?
The European Parliament (EP) is the EU’s only directly elected institution, representing the citizens of its member states. Its main responsibilities include negotiating EU laws with member state governments, represented by the European Council. The EP also approves the EU budget and votes on international agreements and the enlargement of the bloc.
The EP holds significant oversight responsibilities, including the power to approve or reject the appointment of the European Commission president and the commissioners. The current president of the European Commission is Germany’s Ursula von der Leyen.
Unlike national parliaments, the EP cannot propose laws but can only negotiate those proposed by the executive European Commission.
The EP is composed of 720 members (MEPs) elected every five years. MEPs then elect their president for a term of two and a half years. The outgoing president is Italy’s Roberta Metsola.
Who Can Vote?
In 21 member states, citizens aged 18 and above can vote. In Belgium, Germany, Austria, and Malta, the minimum voting age is 16. In Greece, individuals who turn 17 during the election year can vote, and in Hungary, married individuals can vote regardless of age.
EU citizens can vote in their country of origin or from abroad. Voting from abroad is permitted in all member states except Czechia, Ireland, Malta, and Slovakia. In Bulgaria and Italy, this right applies only to those living within the EU.
Citizens living in another EU country can choose to vote for candidates either from their country of origin or from their country of residence, but they cannot vote in both countries simultaneously.
How to Vote?
Voting systems vary by member state. Some use closed lists that do not allow voters to change the order of candidates, while others allow voters to select individual candidates in a preferential system.
Depending on national laws, some electors abroad can vote at their national embassies, via mail, or electronically.
Who Can Run as a Candidate?
Voters can choose from individual candidates or political party delegates, depending on the country. Once elected, politicians will join European groups in the Parliament based on political orientation.
In some member states, such as Germany, only nominees of political parties or political associations can run in European elections.
Elected individuals cannot hold positions in national governments or other political bodies such as the EU Commission, the Court of Justice, or the Court of Auditors. All candidates must be EU citizens.
2024 Election Predictions
A survey by the EU’s statistics agency Eurostat in April showed that six in 10 EU citizens are interested in voting in these elections.
According to a projection by poll aggregator Europe Elects at the end of May, the 720 seats in the EP are expected to be distributed as follows: the centre-right European People’s Party (EPP) with 180 seats, the centre-left Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) with 138, and the liberal, centrist Renew Europe (RE) with 86.
The European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) are projected to have 75 seats, while Identity and Democracy (ID) is expected to drop to 68 seats from 84 in April, after expelling Germany’s far-right Alternative for Deutschland (AfD). Smaller parties are expected to win the remaining 173 seats.
2019 Election Results
The 2019 elections marked a significant shift in EU politics as traditional centre-right and centre-left blocs lost ground to smaller parties. The EPP and S&D saw their combined number of seats drop by 76, losing their majority.
This shift required broader coalition-building, boosting centrist and pro-EU groups such as Renew Europe and the Greens/EFA.
Voter turnout hit a 20-year high at 50.66%, an 8% increase from 2014, indicating heightened public interest in issues such as climate change, migration, and economic inequality.