EU(TOP)-NOTCH ELECTION INSIDER

Scholz and Macron speak out in favour of extensive reforms and a stronger single market

28.05.2024: Two weeks before the European elections, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD, S&D) and French President Emmanuel Macron (Renaissance, Renew) have called for fundamental reform of the European Union in order to strengthen its sovereignty and competitiveness. In a guest article for the Financial Times, the two heads of government emphasised that ‘the EU needs more innovation, more single market, more investment, more level playing field and less bureaucracy’.

The EU should pay particular attention to key technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), quantum technologies, space, mobile technology, bio and climate technologies, mobility and chemistry. In order to finance these future strategies, the EU must make its common budget ‘fit for the future’ and invest in particular ‘in transformative spending and European public goods’: ‘We call for this agenda to be placed at the centre of the coming term of office.’

Macron speech in Dresden: Call to defend Europe's future

27.05.2024: During his three-day state visit to Germany, Emmanuel Macron praised the European Union as a ‘unique project in the world’. In front of an audience of around 10,000 young people, Macron emphasised that he had deliberately chosen Dresden, which had been destroyed and rebuilt during the war, for his speech. This city was ‘a sign of hope’ - he was not giving his speech from the east of Europe, but from its centre.

In view of the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine, Europe is at an unprecedented moment in its history: ‘What is at stake in Ukraine is the security of Europe.’ Europe itself must therefore think about ‘its defence and its security’. The unification of Europe would only be complete with a common defence.

In his speech, the French President also warned against the rise of right-wing nationalist parties in the EU: ‘An ill wind’ is blowing in Europe. This is already ‘a reality in Hungary’. For Macron, the ‘marvellous elections in Poland’, which led to a new pro-European government, were a positive turning point for the continent: Europe is not just a place where people agree on common rules. ‘It is a pillar of values, of culture, of individual and political freedoms.’ This Europe must be defended by responding to the concerns and anger of many people with a Europe of respect. What unites Europeans are the common European values: ‘Europe is not the goal, but the compass.’

Franco-German declaration on the competitiveness of the EU

29.05.2024: At the end of the state visit, Germany and France signed ‘a new agenda to promote competitiveness and growth in the European Union’. According to this joint declaration, Europe must not fall any further behind in the global competition. The two major European projects in particular - the Green Deal and the common industrial policy - should therefore continue to be driven forward in the future.

However, Macron's call to double the EU budget is not included in the joint declaration. Instead, the two countries agreed on the cautious formulation of ‘making the EU budget fit for the future’. However, France and Germany would continue to work on creating ‘new own resources’ for the EU budget. According to Macron, this Franco-German agreement should provide a framework for the work of the new EU Commission over the next five years.

Viktor Orbán in favour of a closer cooperation between Giorgia Meloni und Marine Le Pen

30.05.2024: According to Orbán, the main obstacle to cooperation between the European Conservatives and Reformists Group (ECR) and Marine Le Pen's Identity and Democracy Group (ID) was the presence of the AfD (NI, DE) in the ID, which is no longer the case as the AfD has been excluded. He expressed the hope that possible negotiations on closer cooperation would begin after the election. At the same time, he reiterated his wish for his Fidesz (NI, HU) to join the ECR Group.

MEMBER STATES IN THE SPOTLIGHT

France: Rassemblement National and Les Républicains open to cooperation with the ECR

It is becoming increasingly likely that new political groups will be formed in the European Parliament after the elections: Marine Le Pen, leader of the Rassemblement National (RN, ID), announced her intention to form a joint right-wing group from the current ECR and ID formations in parliament: ‘Now is the moment to unite; if we are successful, we can become the second largest group in the European Parliament. I think such an opportunity should not be missed.’

François-Xavier Bellamy, lead candidate of Les Républicains (LR, EPP), also considers it ‘absurd’ not to seek dialogue with the ECR Group after the elections: ‘In Parliament, majorities are reached from text to text, from vote to vote and sometimes from amendment to amendment. At the risk of surprising you, it has very often happened to me, but also to our Macron colleagues and even our socialist colleagues, that they have voted in favour of proposals from the ECR Group.’ 

Netherlands: Dick Schoof proposed as new Prime Minister

Dick Schoof is to become the new Prime Minister of the Netherlands. The 67-year-old is currently a top civil servant in the Ministry of Justice and former head of the Dutch secret service. The four coalition partners - the Freedom Party (PVV, ID), the Liberal Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD, Renew), Pieter Omtzigt's NSC (EPP) and the farmers' protest party BBB (NI) - agreed on this proposal after lengthy negotiations. The coalition had previously decided to fill half of the cabinet with politicians and half with external experts. An important goal of the government is to implement ‘the toughest asylum law ever’ in the Netherlands.

Sweden: Centre Party threatens to expel Liberals from Renew

The Swedish Centre Party has threatened to exclude the Swedish Liberals from their joint group Renew in the European Parliament. According to Centre Party MEP Emma Wiesner, the Swedish Liberals should no longer work together with the right-wing Sweden Democrats in government.

Sweden currently has a minority government made up of the Moderate Party, Christian Democrats and Liberals, which is supported by the Sweden Democrats (ECR). With her demand, Emma Wiesner is referring to a current agreement between the European centre-left parties not to cooperate with far-right or radical parties: She does not see the Swedish Liberals ‘fulfilling the requirements of the declaration as it stands today’

Spain: Partido Popular launches election campaign / Vox considers alliance between ID and ECR unlikely

At the start of its election campaign on 26 May 2020, the conservative opposition party Partido Popular (PP, EPP) protested in front of thousands of people against the socialist government's amnesty law, which would pardon hundreds of Catalan independence leaders. Just four days later, the Spanish parliament finally approved the controversial amnesty law by 177 votes to 172.

PP leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo described the upcoming European elections as a referendum on Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez (PSOE, S&D) and his governing coalition: ‘As this legislative term is lost, as this government has brought the country to a standstill, there is no point in continuing.’

Meanwhile, the Spanish judiciary announced on 30 May 2020 that Begoña Gómez, wife of Prime Minister Sánchez, would now be investigated on suspicion of corruption after all. The competent regional court rejected an appeal by the public prosecutor's office. According to a complaint filed by the right-wing organisation ‘Manos Limpias’ (Clean Hands), Begoña Gómez is alleged to have helped companies win public contracts through letters of recommendation.  

Jorge Buxadé, lead candidate of the national conservative party Vox (EKR) and deputy leader of the ECR, described a parliamentary alliance between the EKR and ID as highly unlikely on 29 May 2024: Vox is in favour of creating a large alliance between the two parties.

Lithuania: Gitanas Nausėda remains president

The incumbent President Gitanas Nausėda has clearly won the run-off election for the presidency. He received around three quarters of the vote. The president leads the country's armed forces and represents Lithuania at EU and NATO summits. He also has a right of veto on many political issues.

Following his re-election, Nausėda declared that support for Ukraine and Lithuania's security will continue to be key issues during his new term of office. He emphasised: ‘My basic principles and top priorities were support for Ukraine, strengthening Lithuania's security, an active foreign policy and active participation in various European Union formats. So I think that we have been moving forward all this time and have implemented very important decisions, especially regarding Lithuania's security.’

Bulgaria: Vazrazhdane wants to cooperate with AfD

The pro-Russian party Vazrazhdane (ID) has invited the AfD to form a ‘truly conservative and sovereign’ EU parliamentary group with it. Party leader Kostadin Kostadinov announced that ‘Vazrazhdane will definitely cooperate with Alternative for Germany’: ‘We have already taken steps to form a new group in the European Parliament and will offer the German party to join us in order to drive the process forward.’ Kostadinov will not allow the - in his words - ‘current liberal-fascist regime’ to continue in Europe after the elections.