It was on Thursday June 6 that the European elections in some of the Member States. In the space of four days, more than 370 million voters are called upon to choose their future representatives to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, explains Romain Lemaresquier. A number of deputies proportional to the population of the 27 member countries. For example, the France will choose 81 deputies out of a total of 720 elected officials who will sit in Strasbourg for five years.
A single ballot
It is a unique election of its kind, because it differs depending on the country. First of all, if 21 of the 27 member states vote on Sunday June 9, some have chosen other dates. THE The Netherlands are the first country to vote this Thursday, followed byIreland Friday. The Italians, for their part, will have two days to decide: Saturday and Sunday.
Another particularity: certain countries have set up thresholds to be reached in order to obtain elected representatives. In France, it is 5%, in Italy 4%, while in Germany, there is no fixed threshold. The age from which a citizen is authorized to vote also varies between countries. In France, you can vote from the age of 18. Whereas in Malta or Austria, as well as in Belgium and Germany, but only for the European elections, you can vote from the age of 16.
Other differences: in some countries, voting is compulsory. This is the case in Belgium, Bulgaria, Luxembourg and Greece. Finally this year, European voters will elect a total of 720 deputies, compared to 705 previously. Twelve countries are thus seeing their contingent grow, including France which will now have 81 deputies, two more than during the previous legislature.