The elections
Between June 6 and 9, elections will take place in several European countries, depending on the member state. In the Netherlands, this is on June 6 from 07:30 to 21:00. This time, the Netherlands will elect 31 MEPs, 5 more than in the 2019 European elections. This is due to the departure of the United Kingdom from the European Union and because the Dutch population has grown. The total number of seats in the European Parliament is also increasing: from 705 to 720.
Candidates and Spitzenkandidaten
Although we at Castro already hosted the first 2024 European election debate on April 9 (it can be viewed here ), the participating parties are not required to publish their final list of candidates until April 23. The European Parliament (EP) is divided into different political groups made up of members of like-minded political parties from different EU countries:
- European People's Party (EPP) - center-right.
- Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) - center-left.
- Renew Europe - liberal, centrist.
- Greens/European Free Alliance (Greens/EFA) - environment and regional interests.
- Identity and Democracy (ID) - right-wing nationalist.
- European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) - conservative, Euroskeptic.
- The Left Group in the European Parliament (GUE/NGL) - leftist, anti-capitalist.
The concept of "spitzenkandidaten" was introduced to strengthen the democratic process by linking the candidates for the presidency of the European Commission to the European elections. Spitzenkandidaten are the "list leaders" of each political group. The idea is that the group that wins the election would nominate its spitzenkandidaat as President of the Commission. This process was successful in 2014 when Jean-Claude Juncker of the EPP was elected after the election. In 2019, however, this procedure was deviated from, raising questions about the future of the spitzenkandidate system. Interestingly, the EPP has now put forward Ursula von der Leyen, the current president of the European Commission. This seems to give her a good chance to continue her presidency and another spitzenkandidaat to become President of the Commission.
Past term
Important steps have been taken by the European Parliament in the period from 2019 to 2024. A highlight of this period is the launch of the European Green Deal. This ambitious strategy aims to make Europe climate neutral by 2050. The Green Deal covers a wide range of measures, including investments in clean energy, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and promoting sustainable agricultural practices. This initiative has received considerable attention from both supporters and opponents and is likely to remain a central theme during upcoming election campaigns.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Parliament called for measures to support health care, stimulate economic recovery and strengthen cross-border cooperation. In April 2024, after nearly a decade of debate, the European Parliament agreed to the migration pact, leading to a new and stricter European asylum and migration policy.
Furthermore, topics such as digitalization and social policy were high on the agenda, as well as cooperation on trade, security and climate change. This led to the Consumer Agenda, European Health Data Space, DMA, DSA, AI Act, and more.
Populist shift
In the upcoming elections, we can expect a political shift. Although the classic power blocs of the EPP and S&D seem to remain fairly equal compared to five years ago according to current polls, the nationalist ID group and the conservative-right ECR show significant growth, while the Greens and Liberals are expected to lose seats. Europe's radical right-wing parties are finding common ground in their opposition to the EU; whether on climate, the rule of law or the asylum crisis. So these political shifts will undoubtedly influence the agenda of the new Commission.
Among Dutch parties, the PVV is facing a major victory. The party now has 0 seats in the EP, which could rise to 9, according to a recent Ipsos I&O poll. This is followed by GroenLinks-PvdA with 6 and VVD with 5 seats. At a distance follow four parties with two seats: D66, Volt, NSC and CDA and three parties with one seat: BBB, Party for the Animals and SP.
In the campaign, issues such as climate change, migration, Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the conflict between Israel and Hamas and the possible return of Donald Trump will set the agenda.
In the following blog, we discuss the main issues expected to play a role in the upcoming European legislative period from 2024-2029.