French President Emmanuel Macron has announced that he will sign a decree to dissolve parliament and hold new parliamentary elections in light of the defeat of his Renaissance Party in the European Union elections. It will take place in the first round on June 30 and the second round on July 7, Macron said in a speech this evening.
This article was broadcast on ZIB Spezial, ORF2, June 9, 2024.
According to projections, Marine Le Pen’s right-wing populist Rassemblement National (RN) will get about 32 percent of EU elections, while Macron’s list will get just 15 percent. Le Pen welcomed Macron’s announcement. They are poised to take power in France if the RN wins the confidence of voters.
Apart from France’s Rassemblement National, right-wing parties have been doing well and winning in other parts of Europe. According to projections, the national conservative European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) has 70 seats in the EU Parliament, while the far-right Identity and Democracy (ID) group has 60 members.
EPP can defend the top spot with 186 mandates. The Social Democratic Party also defends the second position with 133 MPs. The Liberal Renewal Group has 82 members, with the Greens losing 53 seats. The group of unaligned MPs, which brings together several MPs from the right wing, is currently gaining strength: it has 100 seats. The Left came last with 36 MPs.
Around 370 million people in all the member states of the European Union decided in the EU elections what will happen in Europe in the next five years. How should the election results be interpreted? Which topics are most urgent on the agenda? What is the mood in Europe? What reforms does the EU need?
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