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Following the European elections in May, MEPs and EU member states will shape the transition into the new term. These are the next steps towards the formation of the Parliament and the Commission.
The European elections are looming ever closer but how will the Parliament's main political groups choose their candidates for the EU's top jobs in the lead-up to May 2019?
Answer EURACTIV’s 10 questions and see which candidate you should back on 23 April.
Since Brexit, many of the candidates for the 2017 French presidential election have been campaigning to leave the EU or renegotiate the treaties. Some hope to validate these positions with referendums.
As EU leaders gather today (17 March) for yet another summit, trying to fix the migrant crisis, successive elections in member countries have dwarfed the largest political force in the EU following the 2014 European elections.
The European Peoples’ Party, who is the largest in the European Parliament with 251 MEPs out of the total of 751, is now the third force, by the number of its heads of state and government sitting at the summits. The most influential leader of the EPP is without any doubt the German Chancellor Angela Merkel.
The Socialists and Democrats, who have 190 MEPs, are now the number one force at summits.
But perhaps more surprisingly, the liberals, who have only 70 MEPs in the European Parliament and are the fourth largest political group there, are now the second largest force at EU summits.
Jean-Claude Juncker's team of European Commissioners was approved by the European Parliament on 22 October 2014 and officially took office on 1 November 2014. Who is who in the new Commission? EURACTIV has this full overview.
After a first plenary session and a series committee meetings in early July 2014, key positions were distributed in the European Parliament.
The European Parliament’s 22 committees held their first meeting on Monday (7 July). On the agenda was the election of committee chairs and vice-chairs.
The week before, MEPs gathered for the Parliament's first plenary session in Strasbourg, and elected a president, vice-presidents and quaestors. They also appointed the leader(s) of their faction.
The final leading positions were settled after one Vice-President, Corina Cretu, was selected to take up a Commissioner role in Jean-Claude Juncker's EU executive team.
Find an overview of the Parliament's key faces for 2014-2019 in our infographic.
With less than four weeks to go before polls open on 22-25 May, the parties' main candidates for the EU Commission presidency face each other in a series of 'Presidential Debates', broadcasted by national and European media.
The main candidates, or 'Spitzenkandidaten', are put forward by their parties as official candidates to lead the EU executive. They will battle it out over their vision for the EU, discussing raging unemployment, energy, economy and all the big challenges facing europe today.
Seven debates in total are planned. Four of these will feature at least four candidates, who represent mainstream parties. The two main contenders in the race, the socialist Martin Schulz, and centre-right Jean-Claude Juncker, will also engage in three 'face-off' debates.
Across Europe, parties in government and opposition forces will rally support and lure voters on 22-25 May. With less than 100 days to go before the voters cast their ballot, EURACTIV presents an overview of where the balance of power lies in EU countries.
Previous election results show that, when it comes to EU elections, parties in government are often punished by protest voters. Have a look at the coalition governments, single allegiance governments and where the balance lies across Europe’s map.
