This photo shows the flags of European countries flying in front of the European Parliament building in Strasbourg, eastern France, on June 6, 2024. (Photo by SEBASTIEN BOZON / AFP) (Photo by SEBASTIEN BOZON/ AFP via Getty Images)
Sebastien Bozon | Afp | beautiful images
The final and biggest day of voting in the European Union elections took place on Sunday, with millions of people expected to cast their ballots.
Estonians began proceedings with three days starting on Monday and polling stations have since opened across the 27 EU member states. The majority of votes will be cast on Sunday.
More than 400 million people are eligible to vote for the 720 members of the European Parliament (MEPs). In some countries, this includes young people – the voting age is 16 in Austria, Belgium, Germany and Malta and 17 in Greece. Voter turnout was just over 50% in the last EU election in 2019, according to official data.
Exit poll so far
This year’s election is taking place in context growing support for far-right parties in Europe, many of which are also increasingly successful at home.
This includes the anti-immigrant party of Dutch nationalist Geert Wilders, on record made significant gains in the EU elections in the Netherlands on Thursday, according to the latest polls. The eight seats expected for the country’s left-wing Labor and Green parties give them only a slight lead over the seven seats for Wilders’s Party for Freedom (PVV). Wilders also won one Decisive victory in the Dutch national election last November.
In addition to the Netherlands, voting has also ended in the Czech Republic, Malta, Latvia, Slovakia and Ireland.
EU-wide exit polls are expected later on Sunday and will provide a strong indication of the shape of the bloc’s parliament in the coming months. next year.
European Parliament
Elections in the EU take place every five years, with citizens voting for parties or MEPs from their country to represent them at a bloc-wide level.
Voting systems vary slightly between countries, but citizens can usually vote in favor of the same political parties at EU elections as in national elections. The parties then form coalitions in the EU parliament.
For example, the European People’s Party, the party that won the most seats in the 2019 EU elections, includes MEPs from Christian democratic, liberal-conservative and conservative parties across the EU.
The 720 MEPs come from all 27 EU countries – the most populous countries elect the most MEPs. Germany holds the top position with 96 MEPs, while Cyprus, Luxembourg and Malta have the lowest number of representatives, each with 6 representatives.
MEPs create and decide on laws and regulations across EU member states, addressing social, economic, climate, defense and other issues. An example is Digital Services Actdesigned to tackle illegal and harmful content online, which tech companies like social media giants are now required to comply with in Europe.
Analysts are expecting blocks Policy became more protectionist post-election, with defense likely to become a bigger focus, while climate and environmental policies slip off the agenda.
The European Parliament also plays a role when it comes to the EU budget, which needs to approve, monitor and elect the president of the European Commission, one of the key roles within the EU.
