European Elections 2024: Crucial Battleground for EU's Future
European elections, once considered less significant, have evolved into crucial political events. They now reflect national politics and growing EU-linked polarisation, as seen in recent elections. Key parties, including the European People's Party (EPP) and Socialists and Democrats (S&D), will face newer formations like the Eurosceptic Europe of Sovereign Nations (ESN) in the 2024 elections.
The increasing importance of European Parliament (EP) elections is evident in their national consequences. In Belgium and France, these elections have prompted changes at the highest political levels. This shift is part of a progressive rise in EU-linked political polarisation since the 1986 Single European Act, transforming Europe into a political cleavage.
Voters are favouring small 'protest' parties in both European and national elections, blurring distinctions between 'mainstream' and 'niche' parties. Around 25% of MEPs now belong to the Eurosceptic camp, with the formation of two far-right blocs in the EP following the 2024 EP elections. EP election campaigns are now fiercely contested, with voters, politicians, and the media debating key European and national issues.
The rise of Eurosceptic radical-right parties has deepened EU-related polarisation, making it difficult to discuss key matters within a shrinking mainstream consensus. Ugur Tekiner argues that recent challenges facing the EU necessitate a rethinking of the classification of European elections as less significant than national elections. The EU's transformation from a success story to a troubled entity by a polycrisis (financial crisis, refugee crisis, Brexit, Russia-Ukraine War) makes it necessary to reconsider the status of EP elections.
As the EU faces numerous challenges, European elections have become more significant. They now serve as indicators of national politics and reflect growing EU-linked political polarisation. The 2024 elections will see key parties clashing, with Eurosceptic parties gaining prominence. It is crucial to recognise the importance of these elections in shaping the EU's future.
