Versterkte positie Europees Parlement bij verkiezingen 2014 (en)

Elections to a beefed-up European Parliament in May will see voters from all 28 EU countries choose politicians to represent them for the next 5 years.

Substantial new powers handed to the Parliament in 2009 should make this spring’s elections the most engaging since direct elections to the assembly began in 1979.

A shift in the EU’s balance of power towards the Parliament means that one of the first tasks of newly-elected MEPs will be to vote in the next president of the European Commission.

The new system, set out in the Lisbon Treaty, requires the EU's heads of state and government to nominate a candidate based on the election results. This means the Parliament will also have greater influence on the selection of Commissioners.

Engaging voters

A related change in May’s elections is that this will be the first time that political groups will put forward candidates for the post of Commission president.

The centre-left Party of European Socialists (PES) has already selected the German MEP Martin Schulz - the current president of the Parliament - as their official candidate for the post.

The centrist Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) will choose next month between the Finnish EU Commissioner Olli Rehn and the former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt.

Meanwhile, around half a dozen candidates - including 4 current and former prime ministers - are in the running to become the centre-right European People’s Party’s (EPP) choice, with the decision expected in March.

The Greens are choosing their candidate, from a shortlist of 4, through an online primary.

Combating voter apathy

It is hoped the changes will help generate greater interest in the elections and reverse a trend of low voter turnout, which fell to just 43% of the electorate in 2009.

A public opinion survey last year found that 62% of those questioned think that having party-affiliated candidates for Commission president as well as holding elections on the same day throughout Europe would increase turnout.

The new system means that European voters will, for the first time, have a direct say in appointing the next leader of the Commission, and this should increase the EU’s democratic legitimacy.

2014 elections

How the European Parliament works

European Parliament

European Parliament elections - getting out the vote