The first preliminary estimates of the composition of the entire European Parliament are expected after half past ten.
Voting for the European elections is still underway in 19 EU countries.
Voting in the Netherlands already ended on Thursday. Italy’s ballot boxes close last, only at midnight Finnish time.
In addition to Italy, voting continues on Sunday in other large EU countries, Germany, France, Poland and Spain.
Confirmed results will not be available until after midnight, but door-to-door polls and predictions of both national and European-wide results will be available throughout the evening.
We listed below three trends that are worth following in Europe.
1. How big is the victory of the far right?
In the European elections, the far-right is expected to win big. It can significantly change the power relations of the European Parliament.
In the past, the European Parliament has been ruled by the centre-right and the left with the support of the liberals and greens.
So far, far-right parties have largely been excluded from European cooperation. If the election victory is big enough, at least some of the far-right parties can gain more influence.
In Belgium, Austria, France and Italy, for example, far-right parties are predicted to become the largest.
On the other hand, the biggest loss has been predicted for the Greens, who may even lose up to two seats in Finland.
2. The forecast for the largest EU country is already available in the early evening
In Germany, where 96 European election candidates are chosen, the ballot boxes close at 19:00 Finnish time, and the results of door-to-door polls are expected from the country right after 7:00.
The greatest interest is partly focused on the result of the far-right and pro-Russia AfD party. Many parties have built their campaign specifically around opposing the AfD.
Due to several scandals, the support of the strong Eurosceptic party has slightly decreased from last summer’s peak reading.
The party is fighting for second place together with the chancellor By Olaf Scholz with the Social Democrats.
The German political field is also confused by a new, left-wing populist and conservative Sahra Wagenknecht led by the BSW party, which is awarded about six percent of the result.
3. What does Meloni do?
In Italy, which has 72 Euro members, polls are clearly led by the prime minister by Giorgia Meloni the far-right Italian Brothers party.
The greatest interest in Italy is focused on how Meloni plans to comment on the election result once it is confirmed.
The president of the European Commission representing the centre-right would like to cooperate with Meloni Ursula von der Leyen as representing the extreme right of France Marine Le Pen.
Meloni himself has not said which camp he plans to go to.