Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1471309
15 maltatoday | WEDNESDAY • 22 JUNE 2022 EUROPE ON 3 May MEPs in the Europe- an Parliament adopted a propos- al for significant changes to EU elections. The changes would involve standardising some elements of EU elections in the 27 member states, as well as introducing an EU-wide constituency for the first time, through which voters can vote for MEPs from other countries. Voters would also get a greater say in electing the pres- ident of the European Commis- sion through the Spitzenkandi- daten process. Electoral reform at EU level has been on the agenda for years. In 2018, the European Council (all the heads of state of the 27 EU countries) did not support a pro- posal to introduce transnational (across different nations) lists for the 2019 European elections, saying that they would return to the issue "in the future, with a view to the 2024 elections". The momentum for electoral reform has continued growing since then. In 2019, turnout for the European elections reached over 200 million for the first time, with increased participa- tion by younger voters. There was also more focus on issues that went beyond national con- cerns, such as climate change. As well as this, the recent final report from the Conference on the Future of Europe – a year- long initiative that asked citizens what they expected from the EU and what they want for the future – contained a number of provisions for electoral change. In Recommendation 16 from panel two, participants called for laws to harmonise electoral con- ditions across the EU: "European citizens should have the right to vote for different Eu- ropean Union level parties that each consist of candidates from multiple Member States. Dur- ing a sufficient transition period, citizens could still vote for both national and transnational par- ties." The purpose of this recom- mendation was to ensure the EU could "build a sense of uni- ty, which could be achieved by a truly unified election of the Eu- ropean Parliament". So, what will these electoral re- forms look like? And how likely are they to be implemented? The electoral reforms Under the proposed reforms countries will continue to vote for their MEPs in the usual man- ner. There are currently 705 seats in the EU parliament. In Ireland, for example, voters will vote to elect 13 MEPs in differ- ent national constituencies, as they have done previously. As well as this, however, voters will also be asked to vote to elect MEPs to a new constituency of 28 seats. This will be a pan-Eu- ropean constituency, which will allow people to select candidates from outside their country for the first time. The candidates for this con- stituency will be put forward by the European parties – the coalition groups that MEPs form a part of in the EU Par- liament. At EU level, all MEPs are part of different groupings. So, for example, Fianna Fáil MEPs are all part of the Renew Europe group, while Fine Gael MEPs are part of the European People's Party. These parties will reach a consensus on candidates, and put them forward for election on numbered lists. Voters will then be able to vote for these candidates in order of prefer- ence. As candidates will be able to collect votes in different coun- tries, they will have to cam- paign in other regions aside from their own nation, under the banner of their European party. Candidates will be split between lists of large, medium and small countries, with quo- tas ensuring smaller nations don't get left behind.Transna- tional debate According to Spanish MEP Domènec Ruiz Devesa, Euro- pean Parliament rapporteur on European electoral law, there are a number of objectives with these reforms. "We want first of all to have a more transnational debate at the time of the campaign," he told The Journal. "I think everyone agrees that this is part of the consensus that the European elections so far are not sufficiently Europe- an. That it's very much domi- nated by domestic issues." With this new system, Ruiz Devesa said, candidates will have to travel to other na- tions, and focus on themes and concerns that cross national boundaries, rather than only looking at domestic issues. "By and large they will have to address topics that are of com- mon interest to all Europeans," he said. These topics include climate change, migration, digitalisa- tion, security and the wider world, and how to prepare for pandemics, among others. "And those are the themes of the future of Europe, so the campaign should revolve around those topics and with these candidates that have to go around and collect votes and campaign everywhere," said Ruiz Devesa. He said that national debates will still play a role in the cam- paigns, but that now there will be a "double dynamic". "We will have a richer cam- paign on top, over and above purely national debate, you will have a stronger pan-European debate in the election." Ruiz Devesa also said that the extra candidates would in- crease the profile of Europe- an parties, as candidates will campaign more prominently under the banner of these par- ties, making them more well- known. As well as this, parties will broker which candidates from the national parties are select- ed, increasing their power and responsibilities. "You are also giving not just visibility but also power to Eu- ropean political parties," he said. "And by giving them visibil- ity and power you make them more important than what they are now, which are loose con- federations of national political parties." Other objectives As well as these objectives, the reforms would also allow the Spitzenkandidaten princi- ple to become the norm. Under the Spitzenkandidaten process, European parties select a top candidate for the role of pres- ident of the European Com- mission. The party that then wins the most seats at EU level would see their candidate get the role. This was the process that led to Jean-Claude Junker being selected in 2014. However, the 2019 candidate was rejected by country leaders in favour of current president Ursula von der Leyen, which caused con- troversy at the time. Under the proposed reforms, the Spitzenkandidate (literally "lead candidate" in German) would be formalised, with the top party selecting the Europe- an Commission president. MEPs also voted for further reforms to the EU electoral sys- tem. These include measures to improve the gender balance of MEPs, to increase voting op- portunities for people with dis- abilities and to allow for postal voting. The reforms would also see 9 May become the common Eu- ropean voting day across the 27 EU member states. Will the reforms succeed? The proposed reforms were passed by the EU Parliament on 3 May by a majority of MEPs. However, that was only a step in the lengthy process of actually implementing them in time for the 2024 elections and beyond. Next, the proposals must get the approval of all the individ- ual EU heads of state (the Eu- ropean Council), before being ratified nationally and then returning to be voted on by MEPs. The European Council has six-month rotating presiden- cies. The proposals will like- ly be put before the Council during the Czech presidency, which will last from July to the end of this year. So, how likely is it that these measures will be in place by the 2024 elections? "We are aiming for [2024] and it is possible," said Luiz Revesa. Voting for MEPs from other countries? It could be on the way These articles are part of a content series called Ewropej. This is a multi-newsroom initiative part-funded by the European Parliament to bring the work of the EP closer to the citizens of Malta and keep them informed about matters that affect their daily lives. These articles reflect only the authors' view. The European Parliament is not responsible for any use that may be made of the information it contains. The Netherlands' 'open list' PR system makes their ballot papers even more complex