EXPLAINER
The center right held firm, but a rise of the far right could affect policymaking in Brussels.
It was a good weekend for the far right across the European Union and a nightmare for liberals and Greens, as residents of 27 countries went to the polls to elect the bloc's new parliament.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen's centre-right European People's Party (EPP) held firm and remained the strongest group in the European Parliament. “We will stop them, that's for sure,” von der Leyen told her followers, in a triumphant tone.
But a growing far-right presence in the heart of Europe is expected to revolutionize politics in Brussels. As von der Leyen seeks a second term as president of the European Commission, she will have to contend with a parliament that is less environmentally friendly, more fragmented and increasingly hostile toward migrants, observers say.
This is how the EU voted and the main winners and losers.
The big change
Winners
- The centre-right European People's Party (EPP) was confirmed as the largest bloc in the 720-seat chamber, gaining eight more seats compared to the 2019 elections, for a total of 182.
- The far-right Identity and Democracy (ID) party, led by Frenchwoman Marine Le Pen, won 58 seats, nine more than five years ago.
- Non-aligned parties – which include both right-wing and left-wing parties that do not belong to any of the recognized political groups – won 99 seats, 37 more than in 2019.
- The European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR), dominated by Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, gained four more seats than five years ago.
zero sum game
- The center-left Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D) won 139 seats, exactly the number it won in 2019. Still, it came in second in large countries like Spain, where it ranked first in 2019.
Losers
- The liberal party Renew Europe (RE) lost 22 seats in a blow.
- The Greens party, which made huge gains in the 2019 election, also suffered a blow, losing 19 seats.
According to analysts, these advances and setbacks point to a strong change in the political atmosphere in Europe compared to the previous electoral round in 2019.
“The wars in Ukraine and Gaza, coupled with an ongoing economic crisis across the bloc, all contribute to a much more anxious climate, which also makes voters seek more security,” said Vessela Tcherneva of the European Relations Council. Exteriors. ' vice principal. “And the extreme right promises them more security.”
But, Tcherneva noted, EU elections are also referendums on national leaders.
Who are the big losers and winners among national leaders?
Let's unzip:
- German Chancellor Olaf ScholzThe Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) suffered a crushing defeat, taking around 14 percent of the vote, coming in third behind the conservative alliance of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and the Christian Social Union (CSU), which got 30 percent. of the votes, and the big winner, the Far-Right Alternative for Germany (AfD)which obtained the best results in its history with 16 percent of the votes.
- The vote triggered a political earthquake in France, where Le Pen he won 30 percent of the votes with his National Agrupation (RN) party, double compared to the president Emmanuel MacronRenaissance Festival (RE). As a result, Macron dissolved parliament and called early elections. The president now has three weeks to convince French voters to back his party.
- It was not a great night for the Hungarian nationalist leader Victor OrbánThe Fidesz party. While it won almost 44 percent of the vote, it was the party's worst result in an election to the European Parliament.
- italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni she was a definite winner: her Brothers from Italy obtained almost 30 percent of the votes. It is the perfect political backdrop for her, as she prepares to chair the Group of Seven (G7) leaders' summit later this week in Fasano.
What does this all mean?
Despite their overall gains, far-right parties are divided among themselves. For example, the ID expelled the German AfD in May after comments by a party leader indicating sympathy for the Nazis.
“Cooperating in the name of a higher goal is not really their favorite exercise,” said Olaf Bohnke, Berlin director of the Alliance of Democracies Foundation, a nonprofit organization, referring to far-right parties.
Still, Bohnke said, these far-right groups could slow down or block EU policies, especially those related to climate change, migration and foreign policy, including aid to Ukraine.
