Changes from plenary report to adopted text

The European Parliament,

– having regard to the Treaty on European Union (TEU), and in particular Articles 10, 14 and 17(7) thereof,

– having regard to the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), and in particular Articles 20 and 22 thereof,

– having regard to the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, and in particular Articles 21, 39 and 52(1) thereof,

– having regard to the Declaration on Article 17(6) and (7) of the Treaty on European Union annexed to the Final Act of the Intergovernmental Conference which adopted the Treaty of Lisbon,

– having regard to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and in particular Article 25 thereof,

– having regard to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD), and in particular Article 29 thereof,

– having regard to Council Directive 93/109/EC of 6 December 1993 laying down detailed arrangements for the exercise of the right to vote and stand as a candidate in elections to the European Parliament for citizens of the Union residing in a Member State of which they are not nationals,

– having regard to Council Decision (EU, Euratom) 2018/994 of 13 July 2018 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,

– having regard to Regulation (EU, Euratom) No 1141/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 October 2014 on the statute and funding of European political parties and European political foundations,

– having regard to the amendments it adopted on 15 September 2022 on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the statute and funding of European political parties and European political foundations,

– having regard to the Commission proposal of 25 November 2021 for a Council directive laying down detailed arrangements for the exercise of the right to vote and stand as a candidate in elections to the European Parliament for Union citizens residing in a Member State of which they are not nationals (COM(2021)0732),

– having regard to Regulation (EU) 2024/900 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 March 2024 on the transparency and targeting of political advertising,

– having regard to Regulation (EU) 2022/2065 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 19 October 2022 on a Single Market For Digital Services and amending Directive 2000/31/EC (Digital Services Act),

– having regard to Regulation (EU) 2024/1689 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 June 2024 laying down harmonised rules on artificial intelligence and amending Regulations (EC) No 300/2008, (EU) No 167/2013, (EU) No 168/2013, (EU) 2018/858, (EU) 2018/1139 and (EU) 2019/2144 and Directives 2014/90/EU, (EU) 2016/797 and (EU) 2020/1828 (Artificial Intelligence Act),

– having regard to the Cooperation Agreement between the European Parliament and the European Committee of the Regions of 13 May 2024,

– having regard to the Memorandum of Understanding between the European Parliament and the European Committee of the Regions of 28 February 2024 on cooperation in the run-up to 2024 elections,

– having regard to its position of 3 May 2022 on the proposal for a Council Regulation on the election of the members of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage, repealing Council Decision (76/787/ECSC, EEC, Euratom) and the Act concerning the election of the members of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage annexed to that Decision,

– having regard to its resolution of 26 November 2020 on stocktaking of European elections,

– having regard to its resolution of 12 December 2023 on the European Elections 2024,

– having regard to its decision of 27 November 2024 on the election of the Commission,

– having regard to the Commission communication of 3 December 2020 entitled ‘European Democracy Action Plan’ (COM(2020)0790) and its subsequent ‘Defence of Democracy’ package of December 2023,

– having regard to its decision of 18 December 2024 on setting up a special committee on the European Democracy Shield, and defining its responsibilities, numerical strength and term of office,

– having regard to its resolution of 22 November 2023 on proposals of the European Parliament for the amendment of the Treaties,

– having regard to the report on the final outcome of the Conference on the Future of Europe of May 2022,

– having regard to the Commission’s Enlargement Package of 30 October 2024,

– having regard to Rule 55 of its Rules of Procedure,

– having regard to the report of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs (A10-0156/2025),

B. whereas the 2024 European elections were held simultaneously with parliamentary elections in two Member States, with local and regional elections in eight Member States and a referendum in one Member State;

C. whereas in most Member States a higher turnout compared to the previous European elections was recorded;

D. whereas suffrage rights were expanded in a few Member States that lowered the voting age to 16, resulting in an additional total of two million eligible voters below the age of 18; whereas some Member States have lowered the age limit for candidates to 18, while in others it has remained at 25; whereas overall, up to 25 million young people have voted for the first time;

E. whereas according to the Eurobarometer post-electoral survey, young people’s participation in the European elections (under 25s) fell by 6 % compared to the 2019 elections, dropping from 42 % in 2019 to 36 % in 2024; whereas turnout among young people should remain a focal point of policy efforts in the years to come;

F. whereas there is insufficient uniform and granular data available on the participation of vulnerable groups or on the use of alternative voting methods; whereas national frameworks for the collection of data pertaining to the European elections should be further harmonised to support evidence-based policy solutions at EU level;

G. whereas around 18 400 candidates and 490 candidate lists stood on the ballots, campaigning under different electoral arrangements largely governed by national provisions across the Member States; whereas candidate registration and campaign periods ranged from several months to a few weeks; whereas independent individual candidacy was not possible in nine Member States;

H. whereas significant differences in regulatory approaches and restrictions between the Member States on voting and candidacy rights remain; whereas important reforms aimed at aligning electoral rules and procedures across the Union have yet to be completed;

I. whereas the most recent Eurobarometer suggests that in the 2024 European elections people were motivated to vote for reasons concerning shared European issues such as the cost of living, the economy, migration, the rule of law and climate change; whereas in national debates these issues are often exclusively approached from a national policy angle; whereas political parties and candidates have a responsibility to adequately inform citizens about the policy response and governance at EU level, including informing citizens about the European political parties and political groups they are affiliated with in Parliament;

J. whereas in the absence of a centralised European voter register, data exchange among Member States on possible multiple entries remains a challenge, not least because data about dual citizenship is not available;

K. whereas special measures foster electoral participation and representation of under-represented and vulnerable groups; whereas 11 Member States have legislated a quota for women;

L. whereas around 11 million EU citizens living in another Member State were eligible to vote in their country of residence; whereas they still face administrative barriers to their participation in their country of residence; whereas Parliament’s position of 14 February 2023, which sought to address these barriers, was ignored by the Council;

M. whereas a healthy democracy relies on voters having access to a wide range of ideas, perspectives and information; whereas freedom of speech ensures that candidates, parties, media and citizens can express opinions, debate policies and share facts freely – helping voters make informed choices;

N. whereas a healthy political debate is negatively affected by disinformation; whereas the spread of disinformation, including, but not limited to, social media, continues to pose a growing systemic threat to European electoral and democratic processes; whereas the Commission opened infringement procedures and began investigations against certain large online platforms, including for deceptive political advertising and lack of content monitoring and moderation, stemming from a lack of appointment of national digital services coordinators or lack of empowerment of the relevant bodies to perform the tasks required by the Digital Services Act (DSA); whereas, in particular, the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) and its owner Elon Musk continue to openly defy EU regulatory authorities through company policy and communications;

O. whereas most of the provisions of the new Regulation (EU) 2024/900 on the transparency and targeting of political advertising had not yet entered into effect when the European elections took place; whereas this Regulation is expected to complement the DSA and to bolster the EU’s resilience to election interference;

P. whereas improving the representation of persons with disabilities in Parliament is crucial to fostering a truly inclusive and diverse legislative body;

Q. whereas young Europeans constitute 25 % of the total EU population, while only 10 % of the seats in Parliament are occupied by elected members under 30 years old;

S. whereas recent geopolitical turmoil, including the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified full-scale war of aggression against Ukraine, and a worrying shift in transatlantic relations, has been a catalyst for disinformation narratives;

T. whereas the upcoming enlargement will require a deep reform of the institutional set-up of the Union, possibly involving its electoral framework; whereas a Union of more than 30 Member States can only be a relevant and independent global player and can only properly function if its decision-making is made less bureaucratic and more efficient and is built on the basis of a truly European, transnational and shared democratic sphere;

European democracy after the 2024 European elections

1. Recalls that the fitness and ability of the EU to tackle the challenges of the 21st century on behalf of its citizens largely depends on its ability to maintain and foster healthy democratic debates while ensuring the resilience and integrity of its elections and democratic processes; stresses that these cannot be taken for granted and must be strengthened and protected through a coherent policy framework; is convinced that this work is far from complete and that policy efforts must be intensified to boost participation in elections and to make the Union less bureaucratic and more democratic and effective in its decision-making;