Nearly 400 million European Union people will go to the polls in the coming days to elect members of the European Parliament, or MEPs, in one of the largest worldwide political events.
Far-right parties are seeking more power in the face of rising living costs and farmer dissatisfaction, while voters remain focused on the wars in Gaza and Ukraine.
One of the major uncertainties is whether European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen would continue to serve as the EU’s public face.
Here is a look at the EU election, which runs Thursday to Sunday, and the biggest issues at stake:
When is the vote?
Every five years, the EU holds elections throughout its 27 member states. This year marks the tenth parliamentary election since 1979, and the first following Brexit.
The voting period runs from June 6 to June 9. Initial results will not be available until the evening of June 9, after polling stations in all member states have closed.
How does voting work?
The EU election started Thursday in the Netherlands and finish on Sunday, when most countries hold their election.
The number of members elected in each country depends on the size of the population. It ranges from six for Malta, Luxembourg and Cyprus to 96 for Germany.
In 2019, Europeans elected 751 lawmakers. Following the United Kingdom’s departure from the EU in 2020, the number of MEPs fell to 705 with some of the 73 seats previously held by British MEPs redistributed to other member states.
After the EU election, the Parliament will have 15 additional members, bringing the total to 720. Twelve countries will get extra MEPs.
Who is voting?
Some countries allow those under 18 to vote. In Belgium, a law passed in 2022 reduced the minimum voting age to sixteen. Germany, Malta, and Austria also allow 16-year-olds to vote.
In Greece, the minimum voting age is seventeen. In the other member nations, the number is 18.
Standing for election requires a minimum age, which ranges from 18 in most nations to 25 in Italy and Greece.
What about turnout?
European Union elections usually do not bring a huge turnout, but there was a clear upturn in public interest in the 2019 election. At 50.7 percent, the turnout was eight points higher than in 2014 after steadily falling since 1979, when it reached 62 percent..
In April, the latest edition of the European Parliament’s Eurobarometer highlighted a surge of interest in the upcoming election. Around 71 percent of Europeans said they are likely to cast a ballot.
What are the main issues?
Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine is at the forefront of citizens’ minds, with defence and security seen as key campaign issues. At national level, the EU’s defense and security was mentioned first in nine countries.
The economy, jobs, poverty and social exclusion, public health, climate change and the future of Europe are also featuring prominently as issues.
What do EU lawmakers do?
The European Parliament is the only EU institution to be elected by European citizens. It is a real counterpower to the powerful EU’s executive arm, the European Commission.
The parliament does not have the initiative to propose legislation, but its powers are expanding. It is now competent on a wide range of topics, voting on laws relating to climate, banking rules, agriculture, fisheries, security or justice.
The legislature also votes on the EU budget, which is crucial to the implementation of European policies, including, for instance, aid delivered to Ukraine.
Lawmakers are also a key element of the check and balances system since they need to approve the nomination of all EU commissioners, who are the equivalent of ministers. It can also force the whole commission to resign with a vote of a two-third majority.
What is the current makeup of the parliament?
With 176 seats out of 705 as of the end of the last plenary session in April, the centre-right European People’s Party is the largest political group in the European Parliament.
Von der Leyen is from the EPP and hopes to remain at the helm of the EU’s executive arm after the election.
The second-largest group is the S&D, the political group of the center-left Party of European Socialists, which currently holds 139 seats. The pro-business liberal and pro-European Renew group holds 102 seats ahead of an alliance made up of green and regionalist political parties that holds 72 seats.
Far right looks to make gains
The two groups have many divergences and it is unclear to what extent they could team up to affect the EU’s agenda, especially the EU’s efforts to support Ukraine against Russia in the war.
The EPP and S&D are expected to remain stable. Pro-business liberals and greens could both take a hit after they made big gains at the previous election.
What happens after the EU election?
Once the weight of each political force is determined, MEPs will elect their president at the first plenary session, from 16-19 July. Then, most likely in September after weeks of negotiations, they will nominate the president of the European Commission, following a proposal made by the member states.
In 2019, von der Leyen won a narrow majority (383 votes in favor, 327 against, 22 abstentions) to become the first woman to head the institution. Parliamentarians will also hear from the European commissioners before approving them in a single vote.
Von der Leyen has good chances to be appointed for another term, but she needs to secure the support of enough leaders. She has also antagonised many lawmakers by suggesting she could work with the hard right depending on the outcome of the elections.
