THE 2014 EUROPEAN ELECTIONS: THIS TIME IT’S DIFFERENT- MORE DEMOCRACY LESS BUREAUCRACY

Vote and let your voice be heard

Elections to the European Parliament will be held in all member states of the European Union (EU) between 22 and 25 May 2014 (depending on the dates set by the national governments), as decided unanimously by the Council of the European Union.     

It will be the eighth Europe-wide election to the European Parliament since the first direct elections in 1979.

The countdown has started: there are 100 days to go until the first polling stations open for the 2014 European elections. In this second biggest democratic exercise in the world, close to 500 million people can cast their vote for a new European Parliament. The 751 MEPs taking up their seats in July will not only set the course of European policies for the next five years but also elect the leader of the EU's executive body, the European Commission President.

For the first time, the composition of the new European Parliament will determine who will lead the next European Commission, the EU's executive body, which initiates legislation and supervises its implementation. Under the new rules, EU government leaders, who will propose a candidate for the post of the future Commission President, must do so on the basis of the election results.

The European Parliament will elect the new Commission President by a majority of the component members, i.e. at least half of the 751 MEPs to be elected (376). European political parties will therefore, or have already, put forward their candidates for this leading position in the EU before the European elections, thus allowing citizens to have a say over next Commission President.

The new political majority emerging from the elections will also shape European legislation over the next five years in areas from the single market to civil liberties.

The Parliament - the only directly elected EU institution - is now a linchpin of the European decision-making system and has an equal say with national governments on virtually all EU laws. Voters will be more influential than ever. 

If you are an EU national living in another EU country, you have the right to vote and stand as a candidate for the European Parliament elections in that country. Check for details with your Embassy or Consulate.

Vote and let your voice be heard.  The EU Belongs to all of us.

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