Why do Europeans go to the polls? Five questions and answers to understand the European Union elections

(Also read: How big will the shift to the right be in the new European Parliament and what implications will it have?)

And although at first glance they seem like unified elections, There are actually 27 different electoral processes, in the absence of a unified electoral law in all the countries of the European Union.

Thus, these elections are held on four different days: They begin this Thursday in the Netherlands and will continue on Friday in Ireland and the Czech Republic, which extends the election day until Saturday the 8th. Estonia, for its part, already started electronic voting this Monday and is the only country that allows it. Most countries, including Spain, go to their polling stations on Sunday, June 9.

An analysis of The Grand Continent notes that These elections “will determine the framework of the European Union’s political debate, its strategic priorities and its decision-making capacity over the next five years.” While “will provide an approximation of the state of public opinion in Europe”.

This time, The eyes are on what results the most radical right will obtain and if they end up consolidating themselves as a force, what direction could issues such as security or migration take? as the benches are formed.

Once the elections have been held, the tenth parliamentary term of the European Parliament will begin in mid-July. What will the election be like and why is the process important? We tell you.

The European elections They are held every five years, so the last ones took place in May 2019. The votes will define the new European Parliament, the only institution of the European Union (EU) that is formed by the direct election of citizens, and the political balance resulting from the vote will determine the allocation of the main positions.

These are the presidencies of the three main EU institutions: the European Commission (the executive arm), the Parliament and the Council (which represents the countries of the bloc). After these three positions, the most important position is High Representative, as the head of the bloc’s diplomacy is formally called.

This distribution of positions will be defined at a summit of European leaders scheduled for June 27 and 28.
​
(You may be interested in: Javier Milei: this is how six months of governing Argentina has gone with economic achievements, social challenges and major political entanglements)

Together with the Council of the EU – made up of the Member States -, The European Parliament is responsible for shaping and approving the legislation of the community club. In the current legislature, for example, regulations such as the artificial intelligence law, the universal charger law, the migration and asylum pact, the climate law or the reform of the electricity market were adopted.

“The MEPs together with the representatives of the governments of the EU countries They shape and decide new laws that influence all aspects of life in the European Union. From supporting the economy and the fight against poverty, to climate change and security,” the European elections web portal points out in this regard.

This body, also known as the European Parliament, has other supervisory powers, such as approving the election of the president of the European Commission, monitoring other community institutions or examining citizens’ petitions, as well as approve the budget of the European Union.
​
(Also: How will Joe Biden’s decision to restrict asylum applications in the United States affect Colombians?)

The work of Parliament is carried out mainly in two stages: in parliamentary committees and technical meetings, where legislation is prepared, and in plenary sessions, where it is debated and approved.

The European Parliament has twenty commissions and three subcommittees, which deal with a specific political area. to examine the proposals coming from the European Commission. In them, MEPs and political groups can propose amendments or ask to reject a bill.

But the number of MEPs for each country is not exactly proportional to its population, but rather that the smaller countries have more than what would be their share due to the regressive proportionality system.

In any case, no country can have less than 6 (those that Malta, Luxembourg and Cyprus have) or more than 96 MEPs (those that Germany has).

This time, the seats will be distributed like this:

• Germany: 96
• France: 81
• Italy: 76
• Spain: 61
• Poland: 53
• Romania: 33
• Netherlands: 31
• Belgium: 22
• Greece: 21
• Czech Republic: 21
• Sweden: 21
• Portugal: 21
• Hungary: 21
• Austria: 20
• Bulgaria: 17
• Denmark: 15
• Finland: 15
• Slovakia: 15
• Ireland: 14
• Croatia: 12
• Lithuania: 11
• Slovenia: 9
• Latvia: 9
• Estonia: 7
• Cyprus: 6
• Luxembourg: 6
• Malta: 6

Each country has different voting criteria, such as a specific threshold to be elected or the constitution of open or closed lists. But the general rule is that The number of MEPs elected from a political party will be “proportional to the number of votes it receives.”

Another aspect to take into account is that Although parties from each country part
icipate in the elections (such as the Spanish PSOE or the French National Group), the deputies of the European Parliament are grouped by political affinities and not by nationality.
​
Currently, there are seven political groups: the European People’s Party (EPP), the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D), Renew Europe, the Greens/EFA, The Left and the two most radical parties on the right: the Conservatives and Reformists (ECR), and Identity and Democracy (ID).

There are also some MEPs who do not belong to any political group and who are part of the ‘non-registered’, such as the case of the Junts per Catalunya party in the last legislature.

Until now, the trinomial formed by the EPP, S&D and Renew European was the “big bloc” where major agreements on central issues were negotiated. But hehe polls announce a strengthening of the radical right in the European Parliament, which could alter the current balance of forces and give rise to new alliances.

Currently, the right in the European legislature is divided into two blocks, the main divider between the two being the vision that these parties have of the European Union itself. On one side is the bloc of the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR), considered ‘pro-European’ parties.

This bench has 69 legislators, from parties such as Fratelli d’Italia, led by the head of the Italian government Giorgia Meloni, the Spanish Vox or the Reconquista movement, led by Frenchman Eric Zemmour.

On the other side is the Identity and Democracy (ID) group, which had 59 members until the recent expulsion of the German AfD party. Marine Le Pen’s French National Rally party participates in this bloc.

Polls indicate that these two groups could reach between 20% and 25% of the seats, although the possibilities of a union between them are unknown.

If the scenario projected by the polls occurs, it remains to be seen what alliances will emerge from now on, especially for the election of the new Executive of the European Parliament. The current president of the European Commission and candidate for a second term, the German Ursula von der Leyen, opened the door to specific alliances with Meloni’s group, while ruling out working with ID, a bloc that she considers an ally of Russia.

It also seems likely that the large bloc of EPP, S&D and Renew Europe will continue to function, but the group will have a harder time building majorities (361 of 720 seats).
​
Le Grand Continent’s projection is that “while the European People’s Party will continue to be the largest group, with nearly a quarter of the deputies of the European Parliament, the other political groups: the social democrats (S&D, centre-left) and the liberals (Renew, center) will lose seats.” This scenario could have a direct impact on issues such as migration and asylum, international relations and policies to combat climate change.

According to the Barcelona Center for International Affairs (CIDOB), The election result is key to determining the priorities and direction of European policy for the n
ext five years.
​
“It is about deciding how ambitious we want to be in moving towards the green and digital transition, what weight we give to the security and autonomy agenda. strategic direction of the Union, or responses to challenges such as artificial intelligence, and migratory, agricultural and trade tensions. It is an exceptional opportunity to rethink Europe and compare political ideas and proposals,” CIDOB points out.

(In other news: The reasons that lead Israel to continue its offensive in Gaza despite pressure from the international community)
​
​Among the key points will be, for example, the so-called Green Pact, one of the most ambitious in the EU, due to its scope and capacity for transformation. After being launched, this plan became one of the reasons for protests by agricultural producers across the bloc and the effects are being felt in both industry and agriculture, as well as in trade agreements and agricultural imports.

In this context, the polls project that the Green party caucus in Parliament could lose up to 40 percent of its votes. Therefore, in a Parliament with a strong influence of the extreme right, The implementation of measures to combat climate change will have to be markedly more difficult.

Support for Ukraine is also at stake. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine prompted European countries to strengthen the defense industry and their security, but the availability of resources is not so easy. The EU proposed a new strategy with a fund of 1.5 billion euros to help manufacturers in the defense sector, but the negotiation of that plan has not yet finished.

National issues are also at stake in the elections. Thus, in France the power of President Emmanuel Macron’s party is at stake. In Germany, the parties in the ruling coalition (Greens, Liberals, Socialists) could be affected by distrust in the government.

In Slovakia, the attack on Prime Minister Robert Fico has shaken the campaign and could increase support for his populist coalition. While in Spain you can see the impact of the agreements between Spanish socialists and independentists that allowed the formation of a new government.

In Poland, where Donald Tusk’s pro-European government comes to power at the end of 2023, the campaign remains marked by the anger of farmers, who have the support of the opposition party.