Elections 2024: the Netherlands opens the ball for Europeans
The European elections kick off in the Netherlands this Thursday. In Belgium, the election takes place on Sunday, as in 20 other member states of the European Union. The first official results will be known from 11:30 p.m. on Sunday.
Published on 06/06/2024 at 07:19
The European elections kick off in the Netherlands this Thursday. In Belgium, the election takes place on Sunday, as in 20 other member states of the European Union. The first official results will be known from 11:30 p.m. on Sunday.
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In the Netherlands, elections are generally not held on Friday, Saturday and Sunday in order to respect the rest time and to avoid voting being hampered by various religious imperatives. This is why the Dutch neighbors are often the first EU citizens to go to the polls for European women.
On Friday June 7, polling stations will open in Ireland as well as in the Czech Republic, where the election is being held over two days. Latvians, Slovaks and Maltese vote on Saturday, while Italians have two days to cast their ballot (Saturday and Sunday). But voting remains predominantly on Sundays in Europe, since 21 of the 27 member states organize the vote on Sunday, as was already the case in 2019.
European citizens will elect the 720 deputies who will sit in the European Parliament for the next five years. In Belgium, 22 MEPs will be chosen: thirteen seats will go to the Dutch-speaking electoral colleague, eight to the French-speaking college and one to the German-speaking college.
Some 373 million European citizens are eligible to vote. In Belgium, young people from the age of 16 will be able to vote for the first time (in the European elections only), as is the case in Germany, Austria and Malta, as well as in Greece from the age of 17.
On Sunday, a first estimate of the composition of the new European Parliament is expected around 8:30 p.m., followed by the first provisional results around 11:30 p.m.
All eyes will be on the results of the far right. Polls have predicted an increase in these Eurosceptic and Europhobic groups.
Another issue is electoral participation. Voting is only compulsory in a handful of countries and even in Belgium, abstention tends to increase. In 2019, the participation rate across the European Union showed its first increase in 40 years, to 50.6%.
