How to boost the European vote

Question: “Hello, I’m from Germany and I would love to know what the European parliament could have done to better motivate people to vote in the parliamentary elections.”

Answer: “Hi, my name is Julia De Clerck-Sachsse, I work for the Centre for European Policy Studies in Brussels.

I think the problem of low turnout can be addressed by the Parliament by politicising the debates more, by making sure that concerns which are on the top of the citizens agenda are debated in a controversial manner and in a manner which is understandable by citizens.

I think it is also important for national parties to give more room to the European deputies to make sure European elections campaign is not dominated by national themes alone, but also to make sure the EU plays a bigger role in the debate.

I think that is an important issue for citizens to understand in the first place : where Europe plays an important role and what Europe can do to change such things.”

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tags: EU Parliament, European elections