PURPOSE: to make amendments to the Act concerning the election of the Members of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage (electoral act).

LEGISLATIVE ACT: Council Decision (EU, Euratom) 2018/994 amending the Act concerning the election of the members of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage, annexed to Council Decision 76/787/ECSC, EEC, Euratom of 20 September 1976.

CONTENT: the Council adopted a series of amendments to the 1976 electoral act which lays down a number of common rules concerning the elections to the European Parliament.

The main changes concern:

the introduction of a mandatory minimum threshold, between 2 and 5%, for constituencies with more than 35 seats for elections to the European Parliament. This rule will also apply to Member States constituting a single constituency; the establishment of a minimum deadline for the establishment of electoral lists (at least three weeks before the date fixed by the relevant Member State for the holding the elections to the European Parliament); the possibility for Member States to allow for the display, on ballot papers, of the name or logo of the European political party to which the national political party or individual candidate is affiliated; the possibility of voting more easily in the European elections, thanks to the introduction of electronic voting and postal voting ; the introduction of measures against double voting; the possibility for Member States to take the necessary measures to allow those of their citizens residing in third countries to vote in elections to the European Parliament; the designation in each Member State of a contact authority responsible for exchanging data on voters and candidates with its counterparts in other Member States.

This Decision shall be subject to approval by the Member States in accordance with their respective constitutional requirements. Member States shall notify the General Secretariat of the Council of the completion of the procedures necessary for that purpose.

This Decision shall enter into force on the first day after the last notification has been received.

The European Parliament adopted by 397 votes to 202, with 62 abstentions, a legislative resolution on the draft Council decision amending the Act concerning the election of the members of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage annexed to Decision 76/787/ECSC, EEC, Euratom of 20 September 1976.

The European Parliament has given its consent to the draft Council decision.

The Committee on Constitutional Affairs adopted the report by Danuta Maria HÜBNER (EPP, PL) and Jo LEINEN (S&D, DE) on the draft Council decision amending the Act concerning the election of the members of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage, annexed to Council Decision 76/787/ECSC, EEC, Euratom of 20 September 1976.

The committee recommended that the European Parliament give its consent to the draft Council decision.

In the explanatory memorandum accompanying the draft legislative resolution, Members recalled that in November 2015, Parliament adopted a proposal for the reform of EU electoral law that aimed to encourage citizens’ participation, to reinforce the European dimension of elections, to make Parliament’s own functioning more efficient, and to improve the conduct of elections.

The draft Council decision - which represents the maximum that could be achieved in the current political context and in view of the constraints of the procedure - contains several positive elements that will significantly improve the character and conduct of the European elections in the future:

full respect for the constitutional and electoral traditions of the Member States; new rules to make European citizens more aware of the link between national parties and candidates and their affiliation to a European political party; the possibility of voting more easily in European elections, through the introduction of electronic and postal voting, which should result in a higher electoral turnout; the right to vote granted to citizens of the Union residing in third countries; the establishment of a minimum deadline for the establishment of electoral lists; measures against double voting; the designation of a contact authority to exchange data on voters and candidates; a mandatory minimum threshold for the allocation of seats, between 2 and 5 %, for constituencies with more than 35 seats for EP elections, which will make the electoral conditions more equal for political parties in all Member States.

PURPOSE: to make amendments to the Act concerning the election of the Members of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage (electoral act).

PROPOSED ACT: Council Decision.

ROLE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: Council may adopt the act only if Parliament has given its consent to the act.

CONTENT: the Council proposes to amend the 1976 Electoral Act which lays down a number of common rules concerning elections to the European Parliament (EP).

The main change concerns the introduction of an obligatory minimum threshold of between 2% and 5% for constituencies with more than 35 seats in the EP elections . This rule would also apply to single-constituency member states.

Member States shall:

allow for the display, on ballot papers, of the name or logo of the European political party to which the national political party or individual candidate is affiliate; provide for the possibilities of advance voting, postal voting, and electronic and internet voting, in elections to the European Parliament while ensuring in particular the reliability of the result, the secrecy of the vote, and the protection of personal data; take the measures necessary to allow those of their citizens residing in third countries to vote in elections to the European Parliament.

Member States shall also be required to take measures necessary to ensure that double voting in elections to the European Parliament is subject to effective, proportionate and dissuasive penalties. They shall designate a contact authority responsible for exchanging data on voters and candidates with its counterparts in the other Member States.