Big news about the European elections: you will be able to vote anywhere in the country and without having to ask in advance.

Elections to the European Parliament will take place on June 9 in Portugal, and for the first time voters will be able to vote anywhere in the country without having to request it in advance. Portuguese residents in EU countries will be able to vote in person at diplomatic missions on June 8 and 9.

Although Portugal’s attachment to Europe is the highest among EU member states, according to Eurobarometers, voter turnout remains below the European average. In 2019, Portugal achieved a record level of electoral abstention of 68.6%, bucking the European downward trend.

This year, the European Parliament is keen to encourage voters to take part in the elections and believes that some of the crises seen in current events in recent years may lead to a decrease in the number of abstentions. “In this legislature alone we had Covid-19, the war in Ukraine, which raised questions about European defense and also about the importance of the US election because one of the candidates is not a big fan of NATO,” says Pedro. Valente, head of the European Parliament office in Lisbon. Beyond defence, the rise of extremism also worries members of the European Parliament. “Extremism is growing. It is likely that there will be an increase in votes for these forces, but it is not a fact that they will be able to understand each other. This is a challenge, but we hope that there will be an increase in votes for more pro-European parties,” he concluded.

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European Union

Extension

Enlargement of the European Union to include new member states, namely Ukraine and the Balkan countries, is one of the hot topics in the European Union election campaign. The doubt is how the expansion will be carried out: “Big Bang”, as in 2004, or gradually, although in the case of Ukraine the question is more complicated.

Geopolitics

Nine out of ten Portuguese believe this year’s vote is even more important given the current geopolitical situation, according to the Eurobarometer.

The right policies save the EU from historical crises

At the last session of the European Parliament, the President of the European Commission said the EU is stronger than it was five years ago, despite the “crises of historic proportions” it faces. Von der Leyen cited the example of Covid-19 and the war in Ukraine, “with an energy crisis that could develop into a dramatic economic and social crisis,” with “massive unemployment in Europe and a long recession.” “But that didn’t happen, and that was thanks to Europe’s enormous resilience and the fact that we had the right policies. [programa] SURE, which saved 40 million jobs, or NextGenerationEU and REPowerEU, which accelerated the recovery and deployment of renewable energy sources of national origin,” he concluded.

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