Ireland and the Czech Republic hold European elections, with voting ongoing.
In the Czech Republic, people can still vote until Saturday late afternoon. Polls suggest that ANO, the populist opposition party led by former Prime Minister Andrej Babis, is ahead of a center-right coalition. According to Babis, people should "kick out the environmental extremists and the supporters of immigration" from the European Parliament.
Politicians in the Czech Republic are worried about low voter turnout. In the 2019 European elections, the country had one of the lowest turnouts, with less than 29% of eligible voters participating.
Results from Ireland are expected to start coming in around 11pm. It remains to be seen if the left-nationalist opposition party Sinn Fein will take more seats than the center-right party Fine Gael led by Prime Minister Simon Harris. Harris cast his vote in the morning at his home south of Dublin. Some voters have mixed feelings about the former prime minister. Keith O'Reilly, a 41-year-old IT worker, admired Harris' energy but didn't vote for his party. "They make a lot of mistakes, like the immigration issue," he said.
In Ireland, for the first time in an EU election, many candidates are calling for stricter immigration policies. In this election, many first-time voters like Emily, a 21-year-old, are expressing concerns over this trend. "They need to try harder. It's amazing how anti-immigrant talk has become common."
Voting in Italy, Latvia, Slovakia, Malta, and French territories starts on Saturday. Voting day is Sunday, June 9th, in Germany and most other EU countries.
EU election results are expected by the evening when polling stations in Germany and other EU countries close. The European Parliament currently has 705 members since the UK left the EU. After the elections in the 27 member states, the parliament is expected to increase to 720 seats. Each country has a fixed number of representatives based on population. Germany has the most seats at 96. Out of the 360 million people in Europe, all are summoned to vote.
For the German coalition led by Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD), the election is also a test of public opinion before state elections in Eastern Germany and the federal elections in 2025. Pollsters predict a decline for SPD, Greens, and FDP, with gains for CDU/CSU and AfD.
In the Netherlands, a post-election survey on Thursday showed that the alliance of the Greens and the Left, led by opposition leader Frans Timmermans, was just ahead of the party of the right-wing populist Geert Wilders, who had led in the polls.
Some experts think that the far-right shift in the EU won't be as significant as predicted. "There will be a lot of excitement about the rise of the far-right in the EU in the coming days," said the managing director of the political institute Eurasia Group, Mujtaba Rahman, on Telegram. "But the reality is 'boring.' The center will mostly hold its ground. And even with more far-right MPs in Brussels, their impact will be limited by the lack of a majority and organization."
Read also:
- Despite the ongoing voting in the European election, Ireland and the Czech Republic are currently leading the polls.
- Simon Harris, the Prime Minister of Ireland and leader of Fine Gael, acknowledged the concerns of some voters about his party's immigration policies.
- Andrei Babis, the former Prime Minister of the Czech Republic and leader of ANO, has been campaigning against "environmental extremists" and "supporters of immigration" in the European Parliament.
- The Czech Republic and Ireland are not the only European countries holding European elections; voting in Italy, Latvia, Slovakia, Malta, and French territories will start on Saturday.
- Vilém Holub, a political analyst from the Czech Republic, expressed doubts about the significant far-right shift in the EU, as predicted by some pollsters.
- Germany, a key EU member with the most seats (96), will also hold its European elections on Sunday, June 9th.
- The AFP reported that the Netherlands saw a tight race between the alliance of the Greens and the Left, led by Frans Timmermans, and the party of right-wing populist Geert Wilders.
