Every five years, citizens turn to the polls to elect their representatives for the European Parliament, a crucial vote to guarantee that citizens have a say in the decision-making of the European institutions. The next election will take place next year.
Ahead of this critical vote, the project “Supporting Engagement in European Elections and Democratic Societies” (SEEEDS)" organises a series of webinars to discuss the integrity of such elections through more active participation of civil society.
In the webinar "Risks and Opportunities in the European Elections", organised by Democracy Reporting International, speakers will provide an overview of different factors that will impact the outcome and the result of the European elections.
A special emphasis will be placed on the following questions:
- How does the rule of law crisis affect the elections?
- What are the challenges in campaigning in Member States with a captured media landscape?
- Which legitimacy have election results ratified by national courts which are under allegation of being politically staffed?
- What is the prospect and tools of mal-intended interference (both foreign and from within MS) in elections?
- What chances for reform are these elections offering?
The webinar will take place on 25 April between 16:00 – 17:30 CET. Interested? Register below!
Answer the poll and help us set the agenda
What are, in your view, the most important risks and opportunities in the coming EU elections next year? In line with the participatory nature of the SEEEDs project, we want to hear from you. Share your thoughts by taking the survey below, and the speakers will comment on the results during the webinar.
Furthermore, the webinar session will be structured with the help of a digital co-working board, allowing participants to contribute to our panel sessions.
Programme
16.00 | Welcome and introduction to SEEEDS
- Mr Michael Meyer-Resende, Executive Director, DRI
16.05 | Introduction of the panel by the moderator, presentation of the results from the survey.
- Ms Amanda Coakley, Senior Staff Reporter, Coda Story
16.10 | Input statements and commenting on audience contributions via digital board
- Ms Ingibjörg Sólrún Gísladóttir, Former Minister for Foreign Affairs of Iceland and Former Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights
- Ms Sabrina Spieleder, Team Leader, Policy, strategy and global priority issues, European External Action Service
- Ms Camino Mortera-Martinez, Head of the Brussels Office, Centre for European Reform
- Professor Alberto Alemanno, Jean Monnet Professor of EU Law, HEC Paris
17.00 | Q&A Session
17.25 | Closing remarks
About the SEEEDS Webinar Series January – April 2023
The Election-Watch.EU Election Assessment Mission (EAM) Final Report referenced in the European Commission Report on the 2019 EP elections demonstrates that despite improved participation, the areas of equality, inclusion, transparency and accountability can be enhanced in future EP elections. These key themes will be discussed during this series.
Key objectives:
- Boost awareness and engagement regarding their right to vote and register among citizens, especially among women, mobile EU citizens, persons with disabilities, and youth.
- Map and assess equality, inclusion, transparency, and accountability challenges in the European elections.
- Map risks and opportunities for participatory citizen engagement in the 2024 European elections.
- Enhance active citizens’ capacity to engage in advocacy with relevant stakeholders.
Identify actionable methodologies for citizen engagement within different electoral frameworks across Europe.
About SEEEDS
The objective of SEEEDS is to strengthen the integrity of the upcoming European Parliament (EP) elections in 2024 through more active participation of civil society.
Voter mobilisation is closely linked to the feeling of community belonging; to this regard, transnational partnerships, and networks of active citizens across the EU have the potential to foster EU citizenship-based values. When strengthened, such networks can act at the national level to produce a collective advocacy agenda for inclusive and engaging elections based on Human Rights and the Rule of Law. Notably, citizen networks are able to consider challenges of inclusion and equality relevant for the full exercise of electoral rights of women and underrepresented groups, as well as transparency and accountability opportunities for fair elections.
SEEEDS is composed of four European civil society organisations, European Partnership for Democracy (EPD), Election-Watch.EU (EW), Democracy Reporting International (DRI), and European Platform for Democratic Elections (EPDE). Learn more about the project and its other webinars here.
