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Interest in EU politics has increased in recent years. Surveys predict high voter turnout in the European elections in June 2024.
What is it about? In 2024, the 27 EU member states will elect a new European Parliament. The election will take place from June 6th to 9th. Around 350 million people are eligible to vote. Citizens of the individual EU countries elect the representatives. 720 members are elected.
How great is the interest in the European elections? According to surveys want 68 percent of those eligible to vote went to the polls go (as of December 2023). Of course, it is still unclear how many of those eligible to vote will actually vote. At the last election five years ago, voter turnout was just under 51 percent.
Why is there so much interest? “EU politics has become more present in the everyday lives of citizens in recent years,” says EU correspondent Charles Liebherr. He sees the reasons in the joint procurement of vaccines during the pandemic, the war in Ukraine, the sanctions against Russia and the subsequent energy crisis. Environmental issues, asylum issues and the rivalries between the major powers USA, Russia, China and Europe would also be of concern. “The EU is becoming more tangible for its citizens as a community of shared destiny.”
What political groups are there in the EU Parliament? There are seven political groups in the current European Parliament:
- European People’s Party (Christian Democrats, EPP)
- Progressive Alliance of Social Democrats (S&D)
- Renew Europe Group (Renew)
- The Greens / European Free Alliance (Greens/EFA)
- European Conservatives and Reformers (ECR)
- Identity and Democracy (ID)
- The Left in the European Parliament – GUE/NGL (The Left)
Legend:
The politicians fight for a seat in the European Parliament on behalf of their national political parties. But after the election, most people join a transnational political group.
Reuters/Yves Herman
What majority relationships are emerging? The majority ratios do not shift dramatically in EU elections. «The group of four European party families (Conservatives, Social Democrats, Liberals, Greens) will be able to defend their clear majority in the European Parliament. Hardly anything will change in that regard, even if the Eurosceptic and right-wing populist parties are able to gain share of the vote at the same time,” says Charles Liebherr. Depending on the matter, changing majorities in votes in the EU Parliament are likely to occur more frequently.
The President of the EU Commission and the body as a whole must be confirmed by the European Parliament. “It is quite possible that the commission will also rely on the votes of the Greens for its election this year,” said Liebherr. Five years ago they voted against the von der Leyen Commission. “After this election, the Greens are likely to play a more important role than before. They are also predicted to lose voter shares.”
More trust and also more skepticism. How come? Many people see more benefits in the EU today. At the same time, EU opponents are on the rise. “The EU is a very welcome projection surface for general criticism of politics and Europe,” says the SRF correspondent in Brussels. The fact that individual states are just as responsible as the European Union is often ignored. In some cases, states reject better solutions at European level. “The EU is a welcome target for criticism, even if it doesn’t always correspond entirely to reality.”