It is clear from the European and local election results that there are some interesting and fairly nuanced things happening. Labour has not done as well as it expected to do – and there are a lot of people…
In Italy, as elsewhere, elections for the European parliament have always tended to be “second order”. This means that voters see them as less important than the “first-order” elections for the national…
In spite of the fact that Austria is one of the richest members of the European Union and, according to economists, has clearly profited from membership, the people of Austria traditionally show low levels…
The Republic of Ireland will be voting in the European Parliament elections on Friday May 23 – on the same day as the country holds its local elections. Ireland’s representation in the European Parliament…
Based on growing polling evidence, it is highly likely that the UK Independence Party (UKIP) will top the national poll in the European elections. Even though historically UKIP has over-performed in European…
France’s relationship with the EU appears paradoxical given the contrast between the traditional pro-EU involvement of French elites and regular expressions of reticence, such as the opposition to the…
Nigel Farage, leader of the UK Independence Party, appears to have stolen the show in the run up to the European elections. But while he has been pilloried in the papers, discussion about him on Twitter…
Lithuanians will vote in the EU Parliamentary elections on the same day as the country holds its second round run-off vote in the presidential election. In the first round, which was held on May 11, the…
Intense political polarisation and protests took place in Bulgaria in 2013. In February of that year, the ruling party, Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria (GERB), was forced to resign and new…
Croatia only joined the European Union in July last year, so this week will see Croatians elect MEPs for the second time in just over a year. Whether this could explain the current lack of interest in…
In March, a new government won power in Estonia. The change of government was triggered by the decision of the prime minister, Andrus Ansip of the ruling Reform Party (RE) to step down so that he could…
The European Parliament elections are just a few days away. And yet, the overwhelming focus of election coverage in UK newspapers has not been about European issues and policy debates, but on Nigel Farage’s…
Very much like the rest of the European Union, two features define the European Parliament election in Spain: a lack of interest on the part of voters, and the supremacy of national issues over European…
No country takes European Parliament elections more seriously than does Germany. Many posters have adorned lampposts around the country since mid-April and discussions in the media centre round the parties…
In a rather symbolic coincidence, the forthcoming European elections will take place one week after the Portuguese exit from the bail-out programme. A blend of austerity, recession and hopelessness defined…
Romanians take European elections very seriously. These elections affect domestic politics as they do in the UK and other Western member states, but they don’t exist in a separate bubble. In Romania, EU…
It is widely predicted that far-right parties will be the big winners of the 2014 European elections. Some polls have even suggested that the French Front National, the Dutch Party for Freedom, the Austrian…
Most contenders for the European elections in Slovenia waited until the very last moment to submit their candidate lists to the electoral commission. There will be 16 entrant lists this time, compared…
As other countries wind themselves up over Euroscepticism, austerity and ethnic strife, Latvia’s third European Parliament election campaign has been as sedate and consensus-driven as expected. Indeed…
More than two years after the Republic of Cyprus entered the eurozone crisis, little has changed. Those responsible for the banking scandals that necessitated a bail-out from the Troika have not yet been…