This year the tenth European Parliament elections were held. They took place in the period from June 6 to 9. It is also important to note that this is the first election after Brexit. In September 2023, the number of MEPs increased from 705 to 720. What is characteristic of the elections themselves is that they are held every five years, allowing citizens to use their democratic right to vote and thus contribute to shaping the future of their continent. The last elections were held in 2019. They were conducted between May 23 and 26. and resulted in a record turnout of 50.9%, citizens from all over the continent.
Here we ask an important question, what is the European Parliament and why does it have such an important function?
The European Parliament is the world’s only directly elected transnational assembly. The Members of the European Parliament represent the interests of EU citizens at the European level. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts European legislation, following a proposal by the European Commission.
The European Parliament has legislative power in that the adoption of EU legislation normally requires its approval, and that of the Council, in what amounts to a bicameral legislature. However, it does not formally possess the right of initiative (i.e. the right to formally initiate the legislative procedure) in the way that most national parliaments of the member states do, as the right of initiative is a prerogative of the European Commission. Nonetheless, the Parliament and the Council each have the right to request the Commission to initiate the legislative procedure and put forward a proposal.
As mentioned at the beginning, the last European elections took place from 23-26 May 2019 which resulted in significant losses for the EPP and S&D group, while the Liberals/Centrists (Renewal), Greens/EFA and ID made significant gains, with the ECR and Levica has a slight decrease. The European People’s Party, led by Manfred Weber, won the most seats in the European Parliament, but was then unable to secure support from other parties for Weber as a candidate for Commission President. After an initial deadlock, the European Council decided to nominate Ursula von der Leyen as a compromise candidate for the new President of the Commission, and the European Parliament elected von der Leyen with 383 votes (374 votes needed). The Commission as a whole was then approved by the European Parliament on 27 November 2019, receiving 461 votes. It is notable that since the last European elections, the right has continued to grow across Europe, but remains divided, mainly over the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the issue of Russian relations.
Also, an interesting question regarding the elections is whether non-EU citizens vote for national parties or for European parties? Elections are contested by national political parties, but once MEPs are elected, most opt to become part of transnational political groups. Most national parties are affiliated with a Europe-wide political party.
In terms of the electoral system, it is interesting to note that the elections for the European Parliament are regulated by the Treaty on the European Union, the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union and the Law on the Election of Members of the European Parliament with direct universal suffrage (the Electoral Act). Also, the electoral act states that the electoral procedure is regulated by the national provisions in each member state, which are subject to the provisions of the act. Elections are conducted by direct proportional representation using either a list system or a single transferable vote. The national electoral threshold must not exceed 5% of the votes cast.
In terms of the electoral system itself, it is also undoubtedly important to mention the attempt at electoral reform. In June 2018, the Council agreed to change EU electoral law and reform the old laws from the 1976 Electoral Act, as amended in 2002. The new provisions included a mandatory threshold of 2% for countries with more than 35 seats and rules to prevent voters from voting in multiple countries. After the act was adopted by the Council following consent given by the European Parliament in July 2018, not all member states ratified the Law before the 2019 elections, which were held under the old rules. As of 2023, the reform has yet to be ratified by Cyprus and Spain; Germany only ratified it in the summer of 2023.
Distribution that was a result of Brexit contributed to 27 seats belonging to the British delegation being allocated to other countries, while the remaining 46 seats were abolished, and the total number of MEPs decreased.
In 2014, a new informal system for electing the President of the European Commission was unveiled known as the Spitzenkandidat system, which dictates that whichever party group wins the most seats (or the one that can secure the support of the majority coalition) will see their candidate. to become the president of the Commission.
In 2014, the largest group’s candidate, Jean-Claude Juncker, was eventually nominated and elected Commission President. European party leaders had aimed to reintroduce the system in 2019, in which they would choose the leading candidates and stage a televised debate between those candidates. After the election, German Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen was elected President of the Commission, although she was not a candidate before the election, while Manfred Weber, the leading EPP candidate who won the most seats, was not nominated because he could not secure support. from any other party. Following this appointment of a Commission President who was not a Spitzenkandidat, some called for the system to be abandoned, while others called for its renewal in the 2024 elections.
The following parties participate in the European elections:
European People’s Party
On 19 February 2024, Ursula von der Leyen announced her intention to run, supported by the CDU. On 7 March von der Leyen was elected presidential candidate with 400 votes in favor, 89 against and 10 abstentions, out of 737 EPP delegates at the EPP congress. Among other things, it is believed that the French and Slovenian delegations voted against.
The Party of European Socialists
The center-left PES held its congress in Rome on March 2. On January 18, PES announced that Luxembourg’s European Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights, Nicolas Schmidt, was the only nominee to meet nomination requirements.
Party Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe
The ALDE party held its extraordinary congress in Brussels on March 20-21, 2024. On March 11, the German FDP nominated Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann to become its presidential candidate. She was then elected on March 20 during the party congress, along with the adoption of the election program.
European Democratic Party
During the Convention on March 8, 2024 in Florence, the European Democratic Party nominated Sandro Gozzi as the main candidate and approved its electoral program.
European Green Party
During the congress from 2 to 4 February 2024 in Lyon, the European Green Party chose Terry Reintke and Bas Eyckhout as two presidential candidates and adopted its election program.
European Free Alliance
In October 2023, the congress of the European Free Alliance chose Myles Rosberg and Raul Romeva as its presidential candidates and adopted its electoral program.
The party of the European left
During the 24-25 February 2024 congress in Ljubljana, PEL chose Walter Baer as its presidential candidate and adopted its election program.
European Christian political movement
At a meeting held on 24 February 2024, the European Christian Political Movement appointed the party’s president, Valeriu Gileci, as the main candidate for the European Commission.
The European Pirate Party
At its General Assembly in Luxembourg in January 2024, the European Pirate Party nominated Marcel Colaia and Anja Hirschel as lead candidates.
Volt Europe
On November 27, 2023, Volt Europa adopted its European election program at its General Assembly in Paris. During the campaign launch event on April 6-7, 2024 in Brussels, the party elected German MEP Damien Boeslager and Dutch MEP Sophie in’t Veld for its leading candidates.
The results of the elections are as follows:
- European People’s Party won 171 seats
- Party of European Socialists won 129 seats
- Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Party won 58 seats
- European Conservatives and Reformists Party won 58 seats
- Identity and Democracy Party won 57 seats
- European Green Party won 42 seats
- Party of the European Left won 29 seats
- European Democratic Party won 8 seats
- European Free Alliance won 6 seats
- Volt Europa won 5 seats
- European Christian Political Movement won 4 seast
- European Communist Action won 2 seats
- Animal Politics EU won 2 seats
- European Pirate Party won 1 seat
North Macedonia, as a candidate country for EU entry, did not participate in the elections. A large part of citizens were not even familiar with the fact that elections are being held within the borders of the EU