Szukaj
Vacancy for a vice-president and quaestor
During the October II plenary session, Parliament is expected to elect a new vice-president and a new quaestor. This vote is necessary as two Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) were elected to national parliaments in general elections, and must therefore vacate their seats in the European Parliament and their respective offices of vice-president and quaestor.
Electoral thresholds in European Parliament elections
An electoral threshold for the allocation of seats is the minimum percentage of votes that a political party or a coalition is required to collect in order to gain a seat in the legislative assembly. Thresholds are said to enable a better balance between governability and representativeness, by favouring the formation of stable majorities and avoiding excessive fragmentation of the legislative assembly. Thresholds are sometimes imposed by law, but in the absence of an explicit legal requirement, ...
Minimum age to stand as a candidate in European elections
The European Electoral Act of 1976 allows the EU Member States to set the minimum age for standing as a candidate in European elections. While in May 2022 Parliament proposed a uniform minimum age of 18, the next round of elections – in 2024 – will be governed by the existing rules. The minimum age therefore varies among the Member States, ranging from 18 (in the majority of countries) to 25 (Italy and Greece).
Revision of Council Directive 94/80/EC: Electoral rights of mobile Union citizens in municipal elections
On 25 November 2021, the European Commission put forward a proposal to modify Council Directive 94/80/EC on the right of mobile EU citizens to vote and stand as candidates in municipal elections. The proposal tied in with the Commission President's priority for a new push for European democracy. The proposal was presented together with three others: a proposal to modify Directive 93/109/EC on EU citizens' right to vote and stand as candidates in elections to the European Parliament; a proposal on ...
Propozycja nowych przepisów dotyczących wyborów europejskich
Zasady dotyczące wyborów europejskich nie są jednolite w całej Unii. Państwa członkowskie stosują różne krajowe przepisy wyborcze, choć wszystkie muszą przestrzegać wspólnych zasad ustanowionych w europejskim akcie wyborczym z 1976 r. Podczas pierwszej sesji plenarnej w maju Parlament ma głosować nad inicjatywą ustawodawczą proponującą uchylenie europejskiego aktu wyborczego i zastąpienie go nowym rozporządzeniem Rady w sprawie dalszej harmonizacji przepisów mających zastosowanie do wyborów europejskich ...
Voting and candidacy rights of mobile EU citizens in municipal elections under Directive 94/80/EC
An estimated 13.3 million European Union (EU) citizens live in an EU Member State that is not their country of origin. Of these, over 11 million are of voting age. Under Council Directives 93/109/EC and 94/80/EC, these 'mobile' Europeans are entitled to participate in European and municipal elections in their country of residence. While Member States have successfully transposed both directives, voter turnout among mobile citizens remains low compared to nationals. In its 2020 citizenship report, ...
Voting and candidacy rights of mobile EU citizens in European elections under Council Directive 93/109/EC
Under the arrangements set out in Council Directives 93/109/EC and 94/80/EC, EU nationals who live in a Member State other than their own are entitled to participate in European and municipal elections, respectively, in their country of residence. This concerns an estimated 11 million EU citizens of voting age (post-Brexit data). Even if Member States have successfully transposed both directives, voter turnout among mobile citizens remains low compared to nationals. Similarly, only a fraction of ...
The poisoning of Alexey Navalny
EU-Russia relations hit a new low in August 2020, after Alexey Navalny, one of Russia's leading opposition activists, was poisoned by a banned nerve agent. Although the perpetrators have not yet been identified, the attack has to be seen in the context of repression and growing discontent against Putin. In response to this clear breach of international law and human rights, the EU is considering additional sanctions against Moscow.
Bosnia and Herzegovina: The 'Sejdić-Finci' case
Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) was identified as a potential candidate for EU membership in 2003. In order to join the EU, BiH has to meet the EU's human-rights criteria, among others. To this end, the execution of the Sejdić-Finci judgment of the European Court of Human Rights is a key prerequisite as it promotes equal political rights for all BiH citizens. Its implementation would not mean automatic accession to the EU, but would be a significant step in that direction. Since the judgment's delivery ...
Franchise and Electoral Participation of Third Country Citizens Residing in the European Union and of EU Citizens Residing in Third Countries
This Study analyses some key trans-border situations in which citizens may find difficulties in exercising their electoral rights – both to vote in elections, and to stand as candidates. It focuses on the electoral rights of EU citizens when resident outside the state where they are citizens, and on the electoral rights of third country citizens resident in the EU Member States. It also covers several complementary issues by examining the consular representation of EU citizens outside the territory ...