Europe prepares for the great celebration of democracy: the european elections, which take place every five years, are celebrated between Thursday, June 6 and Sunday, June 9. The first to go to the polls will be the residents of the Netherlands, while on the last day the citizens of 20 countries will do so, including, the Spaniards, summoned for 9J throughout the territory after several months of regional electoral processes.

In between is Ireland, which votes on June 7and Latvia, Malta and Slovakia, which do so on the 8th. In Italy and the Czech Republic, the European elections take place over two dayson Friday, June 7 and Saturday, June 8.

In each country, the voting process is different: you vote according to your own electoral system and its own legislationand it is precisely in this legal text where, in some cases, the compulsory voting. In Spain it is not mandatory to votesince it is considered a right and not a duty, but in some countries it is.

GreeceFor example, forces all its neighbors to vote in the European elections, with small exceptions: voters over 70 years of age, residents abroad or those who are more than 200 kilometers from their polling station on election day do not have to go to the polls. The mandatory condition does not carry fines in this case, but rather it is a way to encourage participation in democratic processes. In the same way, Bulgaria does not impose sanctions on the voterdespite the fact that its exercise is mandatory.

Belgium is another member of the European Union in which its citizens are obliged to vote upon turning 18 so that they are automatically registered on the electoral roll and receive a notification at their homes. What’s more, as of this 9J, young people who are 16 and 17 years old also have to do so for the first time, as a modification has already come into force, as stated on the country’s explanatory website for these elections. If they do not comply, citizens could face fines of up to 50 euroswhich can rise to 125 if it is a repeat case.

In Luxembourg, however, the age at which you begin to be obliged to vote is 18. As in Greece, the elderly (in this case from 75 years old) are exempt from this obligation. Thus, in the event that the voter does not go to vote without justified cause, he faces a higher fine than in Belgium: between 100 and 250 euros, an amount that can reach 1,000 euros if you skip this obligation again for the next five years, according to the Luxembourg law.

How does each country vote?

In addition to the differences in terms of compulsory voting, in each EU member country there are some voting rules. In some States, for example, you can vote for marking the candidates in order of preference while in others they vote directly, closed lists (as happens in Spain). In any case, the European Union does set some standards common principles that all countries have to respect.

One of them is the time of the elections. Although each country can choose the day or date on which the electoral event takes place, They must always be within a stipulated period of four days, which run from Thursday to Sunday. In the case of 2024, the elections are held between June 6 and 9.

Likewise, the number of deputies elected from a party will always be determined by the number of votes that party receives. On the other hand, European citizens can also cast your vote in another country of the European Union, as well as running for office in that country’s elections. and each person you can vote only once. These four standards are common to all countries, but then the systems and legislation of each of them come into play.

With respect to voting system, Each country chooses the one that will be its own. For example, each country can choose the organization of its electoral constituencies. And although In all EU countries the voting system is proportionalthere may be variations:

  • Preferential vote: Voters can modify the order of preference of candidates on a list.
  • Closed lists: Voters have to select a complete party list, without the possibility of excluding candidates.
  • Semi-open or mixed lists: Voters can choose candidates from different lists.
  • Single transferable vote: The voter chooses his first option and then second, third, etc. If the first candidate is not elected, the vote is transferred to their second choice.

In Spain votes by the closed list method, as in Germany, France, Hungary, Portugal and Romania. The single transferable vote system is used in only two countries (Malta and Ireland), while The most common system is preferential votingwhich applies in Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Slovakia, Slovenia, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Poland, Czech Republic and Sweden.