You can make your voice heard or simply get the information you are looking for about the EU in your own language either at the representations of the European Commission in each EU country or from the Europe Direct information centres. Let's take a look at the institutions where most of the decisions are made. The Court is based in Luxembourg and consists of one judge per EU country. No change in this configuration can occur without the unanimous consent of all governments. When you hear discussions about politics, it is often people who are mentioned: the prime minister of your country, for example, or an opposition leader. Elections to the European Parliament in 2019 were held between 23 and 26 May 2019. A member of Dáil Eireann (a Teachta Dála, or TD) An outgoing member of the Seanad. Discuss your thoughts about this with the group. Yes, EU citizens residing in Germany can take part in European elections in Germany if on election day, they are aged 18 or over. have been living for more than three months in Germany or in another EU country. The United Kingdom and Gibraltar left the European Union on 31 January 2020. European Journal of The European institutions are simply places where politicians from all EU countries can meet in order to work and advance together towards concrete results. To be eligible to vote, you need to be an EU citizen, at least 18 years old, who is registered in the local area. Second, the European Parliament is composed of representatives—known as members of the European Parliament, or MEPs—who are directly elected by the citizens of each EU member state.The European Council and Parl… Since no pan-European government is formed as a result of the European elections, long-term coalitions have never occurred. For example, if the meeting is about air pollution, then environment ministers will meet. European Union citizens aged 18 or over on polling day and whose municipality of residence is in Romania. They can of course modify proposals or reject them altogether. European Union citizens who are entitled to vote, registered with and entered into the voting register in Finland and not lost the right to stand as a candidate in elections in his/her home state. They meet at least four times per year. In the Council, the ministers from all EU countries meet to discuss EU matters and take decisions on EU policies and laws. Belgian citizens aged 18 or over on polling day resident outside Belgium, who have sent an application to vote to the Belgian diplomatic or consular post in their country of residence. The European Commission is the 'executive body' of the EU. The two major parties are the centre-right European People's Party and the centre-left Party of European Socialists. European Union citizens aged 18 or over on polling day resident in Germany, if they are resident in member states of the European Union for at least three months. It is chaired by a president who is elected every 2.5 years. You now know a lot about the European institutions, but do you know the names and faces of the people leading them? The European Parliament is one of the EU's two law-making bodies. For example, if the meeting is about taxation or security issues, all ministers must be in agreement for a decision to be taken. European Union citizens aged 18 or over on polling day and resident in Denmark, unless deprived of legal capacity. If the Parliament and the Council cannot agree on a piece of legislation, there will be no new law. At present there are eight political groups in the European Parliament. Free movement of goods, services and capital in the EU, A common currency in 19 EU countries: the euro, 5. This is quite common in parliamentary democracies; for example, the British Prime Minister is not directly-elected, but is rather elected by the … Η άσκηση του εκλογικού δικαιώματος είναι υποχρεωτική. French citizens aged 18 or over on polling day resident outside France and entered either in the consular register of electors (. However, due to a waning of support and possible opposition from member states, Duff has taken the proposal back to committee to get broader support before putting them before the plenary in autumn 2011. 96 seats in the European parliament are distributed. These officials are citizens of each of the EU countries, selected by means of recruitment competitions. ... You do not have to be an Irish citizen to be elected to a local authority. The Spitzenkandidaten are not directly-elected by citizens, but rather by Members of the European Parliament. These two institutions debate, amend and pass EU law. Framework for the Analysis of European Election Results’. Who or what exactly is 'Brussels'? With this procedure, proposals for a new law are suggested, then considered and examined no more than three times (so-called readings). European Union citizens aged 18 or over on polling day who are recorded in the register kept by the Municipal Council of their municipality of residence (. Lithuania was one of the first countries in the world to grant women a right to vote in the elections. The European Council brings together the presidents or prime ministers of the EU countries. A system of proportional representation is used to elect MEPs in all European Union citizens aged 18 or over on polling day and whose municipality of residence is in Hungary and have submitted a notification to be listed in the electoral register. EU citizens are allowed to vote in local elections on most issues, but not for mayors. As an EU citizen who can’t vote in the election, I’m begging other BAME people to use their voice. Austrian citizens who are aged 16 or over on polling day, resident abroad, and have submitted a notification to be listed in the electoral register of the Austrian commune they were a resident of. European Union law is a system of rules operating within the member states of the European Union.Since the founding of the Coal and Steel Community after World War II, the EU has developed the aim to "promote peace, its values and the well-being of its peoples". To this extent all EU countries keep electoral registers containing the names of all eligible voters in the specific region, to which eligible newcomers to the area can apply at any time to have their names added. The allocation of seats to each member state is based on the principle of degressive proportionality, so that, while the size of the population of each country is taken into account, smaller states elect more MEPs than is proportional to their populations. Until 2019, 751 MEPs were elected to the European Parliament, which has been directly elected since 1979.Since the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the EU in 2020, the number of MEPs, including the president, has been 705. Find out more here. Maltese citizens aged 18 or over on polling day. [22], Legend:     Socialist (PES/S&D) –   Liberal (ELDR/ALDE) –   People's (EPP/EPP-ED), As of 2011 reforms by Liberal Democrat MEP Andrew Duff are being considered by Parliament, which are seen as the most significant overhaul of the electoral system since elections began. [20][34] The European Liberal Democrat and Reform Party have already indicated, in their October 2007 congress, their intention for forward a candidate for the post as part of a common campaign. Their meetings are often referred to as 'European summits'. Fourthly, you can have your say about what is happening in the European Union during the many citizens' dialogues that take place across the EU. Voters vote for a party and each party decides who their candidates are and the order in which they will be elected. The Parliament takes decisions on European laws jointly with the Council. Reif, K. and Schmitt, H. (1980) ‘Nine Second-Order National Elections: A Conceptual There is a campaign within that party to have open primaries for said candidate. EU citizens (other than UK, Republic of Ireland, Cyprus and Malta) resident in the UK anyone other than British, Irish and qualifying Commonwealth citizens convicted persons detained in pursuance of their sentences, excluding contempt of court (though remand prisoners, unconvicted prisoners and civil prisoners can vote if they are on the electoral register) Please put each institution in the correct box below. The work of the Council is led by each EU country in turn for a period of 6 months. It also approves the budget of the European Union. It is therefore possible for a person to have the choice of voting in more than one EU member state. Put the correct number in the box next to the following names: And now see if you can match them to their jobs by putting the correct number in each box below. On the ballot paper, voters are presented with a list of parties. Each candidate led the pan-European campaign of the Europarty. One million people, or just 0.2 % of the EU population, from at least seven EU countries are needed to launch a European citizens' initiative. For more information, see: curia.europa.eu. One of you represents the Secretariat of the Council and is in charge of the voting calculator. Therefore, following the victory of the European People's Party in the 2014 EP election, its lead candidate Jean-Claude Juncker was elected President of the European Commission. Each country then declares whether it is for or against the proposed destination and the vote is recorded in the Council's voting calculator. This is because human beings take decisions and shape policies. However at that time only one party had run with a specific candidate: the European Green Party, who had the first true pan-European political party with a common campaign,[32] put forward Daniel Cohn-Bendit. ", "The EP elections: Deepening the democratic deficit", "Resolution ELDR Congress in Berlin 18–19 October 2007", "Socialists want US-style primaries for commission president candidate", "Barroso admits legitimacy problem for commission president post", EP president suggests election of future EU commissioners, "Judgment of the European Court of Justice of 12 September 2006, Case C-145/04, Kingdom of Spain v United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland", "Les conditions d'électorat pour les différentes élections - Elections européennes et régionales 2009", "Le droit de vote des Belges résidant dans l'Union européenne et des citoyens européens résidant en Belgique, pour l'élection du Parlement Européen - Elections européennes et r", "L'obligation de vote - Elections européennes et régionales 2009", "La candidature pour les différentes élections - Elections européennes et régionales 2009", "ELECTION CODE Promulgated, State Gazette No. Greek citizens aged 17 or over on polling day who are resident in another EU member state, registered in the electoral roll in a Greek municipality or community and have submitted an application to vote overseas to the Greek embassy or consulate in their country of residence, European Union citizens aged 17 or over on polling day, resident in Greece and registered in the electoral roll. European Union citizens at least 21 years of age and satisfying the requirements of the right to cast a vote, except members of the. That would give them individually, and the body as a whole, a democratic mandate. a Included Gibraltar, but not any other BOT (including the SBAs), nor the Crown dependencies. There are plans to strengthen the European political parties[21] in order for them to propose candidates for the 2009 election. European Union citizens who are entitled to vote. Το δικαίωμα του εκλέγειν έχουν οι πολίτες Έλλη-νες και Ελληνίδες που συμπλήρωσαν το δέκατο έβδομο (17ο) έτος της ηλικίας τους». Every EU citizen residing in an EU country of which he/she is not a national has the right to vote and to stand as a candidate in European Parliamentary elections in his/her country of residence, under the same conditions as nationals of that country - this right is enshrined in Article 39 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. European Union citizens resident in France, aged 18 or over on polling day and enrolled in the electoral register. A deeper and fairer economic and monetary union, 3 Consists of (only) one representative/member per EU country, 7 Represents the interests of EU countries/their governments, 8 Decides on the interpretation of EU laws, 9 Defines the general political direction of the EU. If this sounds like a career you might be interested in, then you could start as a trainee. In 2020 Croatia and Germany hold the presidency, followed by Portugal and Slovenia in 2021, then by France and Czechia in 2022. As a European citizen, you can influence EU policies in several ways. Put a cross in the box against the institution(s) that match(es) the description. If you are a family member of a “mobile EU citizen”, ... UK nationals who have been elected for a specific local government function in their Member State of residence So let’s see. What happened? In the last 60 years, EU countries have drawn up many EU laws together. Historical percentage results in union-wide elections of the three major groups by region. 26/2012 (A 57) is replaced by the following: «1. The Parliament has 705 members from all EU countries. As no one Europarty has ever gained power alone, their affiliated parliamentary groups must work with each other to pass legislation. Apart from the institutions discussed here, you may have heard of the following other EU institutions and bodies. For example, an EU law on how to treat urban waste can be adopted in the Council by a majority vote. A person who has been divested of their active legal capacity with regard to the right to vote and a person who has been convicted of a crime and is serving sentence in a penal institution, cannot vote. The role of minister from each of the 27 EU countries is divided up amongst the other students. Under the European Constitution the European Council would have to take into account the results of the latest European elections and, furthermore, the Parliament would ceremonially "elect", rather than simply approve, the Council's proposed candidate. Thursday 10 June: Netherlands, United Kingdom, Saturday 12 June: Czech Republic, Italy, Latvia, Malta, Sunday 13 June: Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, 5%: Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, Member state subdivided into multiple constituencies: Belgium (3), France (8), Ireland (4), Italy (5), Poland (13), United Kingdom (12), Mixture: Germany (candidate lists at Länder or national level), First round: Josep Borrell, 388 votes; Bronisław Geremek, 208 votes; Francis Wurtz, 51 votes, This page was last edited on 20 March 2021, at 11:04. European Union citizens eligible to vote, unless they have been convicted of an action that in the public opinion makes them unworthy of being a. European Union citizens aged 18 or over on polling day and whose address is entered in the population register. Since 1979, every five years elections are held in which EU citizens are able to elect MEPs to represent their views in the EU. Commissioners do not represent the views of their country of origin but rather the common interest of the EU. European Parliament elections take place within a 4-day period, normally in June, all over the European Union. The Parliament elects the President of the European Commission and approves the 27 members of the Commission as a body. In this case, the Commission or another EU country can bring the matter before the Court. In Council meetings, about 80 % of law proposals are decided by majority vote. What are the EU institutions and what do they do? The last European elections were held in spring 2019.The next ones will be held in 2024. Members with similar political views work together in political groups. EU Elections (Europawahlen) Take place every five years. [13] MEPs that are not members of groups are known as non-inscrits. Under co-decision (II) and consent procedures, the Commission’s powers were also reduced, as the European Parliament has to approve legislation. Before making proposals for new EU laws and throughout the whole decision-making process, the European Commission seeks the opinions of citizens and stakeholders. Again, the European Parliament is … [15] This is analogous to the American two-party system in the sense that voting on issues and legislation in the Parliament only requires a yes or no vote, which means voter vote for options or candidates that are close to their ideals. No country trusts their people to directly elect ministers in a government, that is the purpose of the winning party; to choose reliable specialists with substantial knowledge on the matter. b The speaker is not counted officially, thus leaving 750 MEPs. The 2019 election, however, saw turnout increase to its highest level since 1994, at 51%. European Union citizens aged 21 or over on polling day and resident in Poland or the European Union for at least 5 years, were never sentenced for a crime committed consciously or accused by a prosecutor. Understandably, there can be some dispute over the interpretation of these laws when it comes to putting them into practice in each EU country.