EU election results confirm shift to the right

As expected, first results from the European Parliament elections show that voters across Europe have shown a preference for parties on the right of the political spectrum, while Socialists, Greens, Liberals, and the far-left have overall lost seats. 

The European People’s Party (EPP) group scored 184 seats, maintaining its position as the leading force in the European Parliament. The centre-right has gained 9 more MEPs than it had previously.  

The European Socialists (S&D) came second with an expected 139 seats. 

Liberal group Renew wins battle for third place – for now 

The liberal Renew Europe group comes third and is down from 102 seats to 80. They previously risked losing their position as the third political force, as hard-right European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group and far-right Identity and Democracy (ID) were projected to surge. 

Renew’s losses can partly be attributed to the death of Spain’s liberal party Ciudadanos, and the deep weakening of French President Emmanuel Macron’s coalition which lost ten seats from 2019, down to 13. 

On the right flank of the hemicycle, voters have awarded three additional seats to the ECR, taking them from 69 to 73 MEPs. ID has scored 58 seats compared to their previous 49.  

However, 53 and 45 seats fall under the category of “others” and “non-affiliated,” respectively, bringing together all new parties which have not yet officially declared their group affiliation. Many of these are considered to be far-right, and likely to join one of the two groups.  

Among this assortment of parties are Germany’s AfD, Hungary’s Fidesz, Slovakia’s Republika, Romania’s AUR, Spain’s far-right newcomer SALF, and Bulgaria’s Vazrazhdane.  

As Hungarian Prime Minister and France’s far-right opposition leader Marine Le Pen call for a right-wing unification, it is still unclear how ID, ECR, and the non-affiliated parties will reshuffle, so a new right-wing group may emerge, taking the third or even second place.  

Greens plummet 

From holding fourth place in the last term with 71 seats, the Greens have plummeted to 52 seats, now in sixth position. Their losses can be attributed to a weakening grip on their traditional strongholds: Germany, Austria, and France. 

Despite ample wins in the north of the EU, Italy, and Belgium, The Left group has scored 36 seats, two less than the previous term, and now remain the last political force. 

[Edited by Aurélie Pugnet/Chris Powers]

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