The election for the European Parliament has already begun: the Netherlands voted on Thursday, voters in Ireland will cast their ballots on Friday, followed by the Maltese, Latvians and Slovaks on Saturday. The citizens of the Czech Republic and Italy will vote on two days, all other countries, such as Germany, only on Sunday. The differences result from the respective national traditions regarding election dates.
A total of 360 million EU citizens from 27 countries are eligible to vote. They elect 720 representatives (previously 705), whose names are listed on national lists. The election results will not be published until the polling stations in the last member state close: at 11 p.m. in Italy. Until then, only forecasts will be announced.
A total of 1,413 candidates are running in Germany. For the first time, 16 and 17 year olds are also allowed to vote in Germany – that’s 1.4 million young citizens. As the largest country in the EU, Germany has the most MPs in Brussels and Strasbourg: 96. Each MP earns 10,075 euros gross per month (7,853 euros net). From the age of 63, the people’s representatives can receive a pension, which can amount to up to 70 percent of their salary.
In Germany, due to a ruling by the Federal Constitutional Court, there is no threshold for a party to enter parliament in the European elections – unlike in federal and state elections. This means that mini-parties, such as the Ecological Democratic Party, can also enter. In many EU countries, however, there are minimum hurdles of 1.8 to five percent.
Each country sends a certain number of politicians to the EU Parliament: the minimum number is six (Malta, Luxembourg, Cyprus), the maximum is 96 (Germany). The number of seats is determined according to the principle of so-called degressive proportionality. In plain language: smaller countries receive more seats per capita than larger states. To put it bluntly: the vote of a Luxembourger is in some ways worth more than the vote of a German in the European elections.
Although the election is based on national lists, almost every European party has nominated an EU-wide lead candidate. This is intended to make the election campaign appear cross-border and at the same time mobilize voters. The principle of the lead candidate is not anchored anywhere in the EU treaties; it was invented decades ago by two Germans: the former EU MP Elmar Brok (CDU) and the former top Brussels official Klaus Welle.
The logic of the lead candidate is that the party that wins the election should make its lead candidate the head of the EU Commission. This time, that is likely to be Ursula von der Leyen, although she is not on the ballot paper anywhere.
Von der Leyen is the lead candidate of the EPP, while Luxembourg’s Nicolas Schmit is the lead candidate of the European Social Democrats. To be re-elected as President of the European Commission, von der Leyen needs the majority of EU governments and the majority in the European Parliament.
This does not always work: In 2019, the then EPP top candidate Manfred Weber (CSU) was thrown out of the race early by former German Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) and French President Emmanuel Macron among the heads of state and government before a vote in parliament, even though Weber and his party had clearly won the election beforehand.
With the election of von der Leyen, the lead candidate principle is to be applied again this time – as in 2014 with the election of the victorious EPP politician Jean-Claude Juncker. In 2019, however, von der Leyen had still benefited from the elimination of the lead candidate principle: she actually had nothing to do with the European elections at the time and only came into office after the election thanks to a surprise coup by Merkel.
The European Parliament is the only EU institution that is directly elected by the citizens. Over the past 40 years, the members of parliament have gained significantly in authority and power. Whereas in the past the EU governments and the Commission dominated legislation in close coordination, the Parliament is now a largely equal player.
However, critics say that the Parliament still has too little influence because it cannot propose legislation itself, but can only ask the Commission to make a legislative proposal. Only the EU Commission can submit a legislative proposal, although the President and the 26 Commissioners are not directly elected. The Commissioners are appointed by their respective governments and must be individually confirmed by Parliament.
Before that, however, they are “grilled” in individual hearings by the members of the relevant parliamentary committees. The parliamentarians regularly fail one or two candidates. The parliament has other powers: Together with the European Council, in which all 27 member state governments are represented, it decides on the annual and long-term budget plans and has had a right of veto since 2005. It monitors the EU Commission and can, if necessary, arrange for its resignation.
As a so-called co-legislator, Parliament also has various legislative powers: within the framework of an “ordinary legislative procedure”, the Members decide together with the European Council on the Commission’s legislative proposals and in some cases make significant changes to them.
The “approval” of Parliament is required for international trade and climate agreements and for the accession of new EU member states. The only issues excluded from co-decision rights are taxes, competition law and the common foreign and security policy. Here, MEPs are only consulted.
Some voters may ask themselves: Am I indirectly supporting a right-wing populist party in the EU Parliament if I vote for the CDU/CSU, SPD, FDP and Greens in Germany? That can certainly happen. The respective German MPs are represented in parliamentary groups. The large groups (EPP, Social Democrats, Liberals) usually form an informal grand coalition.
In individual cases, however, this coalition can also seek the support of some right-wing populist parties, such as the Fratelli d’Italia from Italy or the ODS from the Czech Republic, in order to change a legislative proposal according to their ideas with the appropriate majority. The EPP has already announced this. However, such alliances in individual votes have always existed. They are sometimes necessary because the groups cannot always rely on their own MPs.
In fact, there is no party discipline in the EU Parliament like in the Bundestag. Members of parliament regularly deviate from their party groups when voting and are not sanctioned for doing so. However, this freedom also makes voting unpredictable.