EP elections 2014 - Results Thread

[MASHED POTATOES. VOTE!]

If Juncker does not become President of the Commission, that's going to be a disaster. Obviously, he was not my candidate when I casted my ballot, but if you first tell the electorate they will have a saying in electing President, and then you're starting to screw with it, it's pretty much destroys what remains of dream about Democratic EU.

Well, in fairness, it's not like Europeans seemed to care about the choice either. Considering how little publicity it has drawn, most probably didn't even know they were supposed to choose the commission's president.

That is true, of course. However, at first the election was suppoused to determine President among candidates nominated by parties, which makes stuff currently going on disguisting.

[Velasco]

It's still a great swindle. I remember a debate where Martin Schultz assured that any person picked to be president of the EC who wasn't among the 5 candidates discussing there would be rejected by the EP. The others, including Juncker, agreed. Does he keep his word or lack honour?

[Diouf]

The EAF has managed to form a group and will hold a press conference next week according to the general secretary of the EAF. I guess the most likely last two members are TT(Order and Justice) from Lithuania and Mikke's KNP(Congress of the New Right) from Poland. It also seems that Wilders will take up his seat in the EP, but he has complained against the ban on dual mandates to the European Court of Justice, so I guess it's only until the ban is upheld. I guess he would prefer a seat in the Dutch parliament then.
Of course, all of this also means that there is almost zero chance left for UKIP to keep the EFD group alive.

[Tender Branson]

The EAF has managed to form a group and will hold a press conference next week according to the general secretary of the EAF. I guess the most likely last two members are TT(Order and Justice) from Lithuania and Mikke's KNP(Congress of the New Right) from Poland. It also seems that Wilders will take up his seat in the EP, but he has complained against the ban on dual mandates to the European Court of Justice, so I guess it's only until the ban is upheld. I guess he would prefer a seat in the Dutch parliament then.
Of course, all of this also means that there is almost zero chance left for UKIP to keep the EFD group alive.

Let's see how long it holds ...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/eu/10889323/Europes-far-Right-in-crisis-as-Geert-Wilder-expresses-disgust-at-Jean-Marie-Le-Pen-comments.html

Strache (FPÖ) today has strongly criticized the senile LePen's comments as well ...

[EPG]

If you ask the typical European voter whether they gave their party leader a mandate to be head of government at the last general election, they'll agree. If you ask them whether they gave Jean-Claude Juncker a mandate by voting for the EPP (or even their friends in the Parliament who are backing him), they will not agree. Democratic legitimacy comes from the consent of the governed, which is not really present or absent in Juncker's case because EU democracy is still mainly about big fragmented coalitions.

[Cassius]

The EAF has managed to form a group and will hold a press conference next week according to the general secretary of the EAF. I guess the most likely last two members are TT(Order and Justice) from Lithuania and Mikke's KNP(Congress of the New Right) from Poland. It also seems that Wilders will take up his seat in the EP, but he has complained against the ban on dual mandates to the European Court of Justice, so I guess it's only until the ban is upheld. I guess he would prefer a seat in the Dutch parliament then.
Of course, all of this also means that there is almost zero chance left for UKIP to keep the EFD group alive.

Let's see how long it holds ...

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/eu/10889323/Europes-far-Right-in-crisis-as-Geert-Wilder-expresses-disgust-at-Jean-Marie-Le-Pen-comments.html

Strache (FPÖ) today has strongly criticized the senile LePen's comments as well ...

Perhaps its time for MLP to take out a contract on her father

[Middle-aged Europe]

The Family Party joining ECR and the ÖDP joining Greens-EFA is kind of interesting because both parties used to cooperate in elections (having a no-competition agreement and running with joint candidate lists) and at one point even considered a merger.

Then again, the ÖDP once ran with the Animal Protection Party on a joint ticket in the 2006 Saxony-Anhalt state election and Animal Protection now belongs to GUE-NGL.

[joevsimp]

Grillo has applied to join the Greens (something I predicted awhile ago)
http://euobserver.com/tickers/124489

I'm not sure they'd have him, there are two or three pirates though

The Greens have indeed rejected the application:
http://euobserver.com/eu-elections/124495

You must be logged in to read this quote.

not to mention that they'd e by far the largest party in the group, with over a quarter of the total green seats, you think Danny Cohn-Bendit and the rest of the french and german greens are going to allow that?

[YL]

Ok, Greens have now organized them and it is conflicting evidence, whether N-VA is on the boat (it has been claimed it will sit with ALDE). Anyhow, the Northern Ireland will be presented by two members in GUE/NGL group, making it the most leftwing constituency in Europe.

You mean Midlands--North-West in Ireland, with one Shinner and Luke 'Ming' Flanagan. Northern Ireland has one GUE/NGL, one ECR and presumably one Non Inscrit, as no-one seems to be talking about the DUP going anywhere.

[justfollowingtheelections]

GUE-NGL now has 52 MEPs:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

http://www.guengl.eu/news/article/gue-ngl-news/strengthened-left-will-fight-for-alternatives-to-eu-leaders-dud-politics

Wikipedia also has N-VA in Belgium joining ALDE, but I couldn't find a source.

[Jens]

The Portuguese Earth Party MPT is joining the ALDE group. I would've guessed Greens or EPP as they are described as Green conservatist or agrarian. But there has been rumours that the Latvian Union of Farmers and Greens could end up in ALDE as well so I guess they have been able to present these parties a good package. ALDE is of course generally greener than the EPP, so I guess it's not that weird.

MPT really is a weird party... - but I guess that it's just me having a hard time grasping the concept of rightwing greens!

[EPG]

Hahaha, amazing. For context, Midlands-North-West is 1/2 conservative rural Irish heartland stereotype, 1/2 exurban commuters who hate taxes. The amount of historic socialism in this constituency is approximately zero. However, in service of their general discontent with tax increases, government policies and the European approach to Ireland's economic crisis, they have elected two Eurosceptic anti-tax populists (the Irish left always tells people they can have lower taxes and more government spending, though they stay away from anything controversial like actually explaining how they'd get the rest of the money).

[justfollowingtheelections]

A list of all elected MEPs:
https://www.theparliamentmagazine.eu/articles/news/european-elections-mep-lists-country-country-complete

[Tetro Kornbluth]

Hahaha, amazing. For context, Midlands-North-West is 1/2 conservative rural Irish heartland stereotype, 1/2 exurban commuters who hate taxes. The amount of historic socialism in this constituency is approximately zero. However, in service of their general discontent with tax increases, government policies and the European approach to Ireland's economic crisis, they have elected two Eurosceptic anti-tax populists (the Irish left always tells people they can have lower taxes and more government spending, though they stay away from anything controversial like actually explaining how they'd get the rest of the money).

Midlands-North West includes places like Dundalk, Drogheda, Athy, and, of course, Galway City... none of which fit that stereotype. I'd also question how conservative Ireland's conservative rural heartland really is.

[Zinneke]

GUE-NGL now has 52 MEPs:

You must be logged in to read this quote.

http://www.guengl.eu/news/article/gue-ngl-news/strengthened-left-will-fight-for-alternatives-to-eu-leaders-dud-politics

Wikipedia also has N-VA in Belgium joining ALDE, but I couldn't find a source.

Open Vld are trying to block this, verhofstadt is off the record not against it though.

[ObserverIE]

Hahaha, amazing. For context, Midlands-North-West is 1/2 conservative rural Irish heartland stereotype, 1/2 exurban commuters who hate taxes. The amount of historic socialism in this constituency is approximately zero. However, in service of their general discontent with tax increases, government policies and the European approach to Ireland's economic crisis, they have elected two Eurosceptic anti-tax populists (the Irish left always tells people they can have lower taxes and more government spending, though they stay away from anything controversial like actually explaining how they'd get the rest of the money).

Midlands-North West includes places like Dundalk, Drogheda, Athy, and, of course, Galway City... none of which fit that stereotype. I'd also question how conservative Ireland's conservative rural heartland really is.

From tallying the European vote on the day of the local election count, the areas which elected the two Eurosceptic left-wingers were the "conservative rural heartland" areas, which have seen none of the supposed economic recovery that we continually hear trumpeted by our government and a largely pliant media, are watching their wages stagnate and their disposable income disappear as more and more financial demands are placed on them as the result of flat charges and service cuts, and are heartily sick of watching their children, siblings and neighbours leave for Australia and Canada.

We slack-jawed, straw-chewing, rednecks may still be conservative on a lot of issues but we're fed up with being patronised and walked upon.

[EPG]

Hahaha, amazing. For context, Midlands-North-West is 1/2 conservative rural Irish heartland stereotype, 1/2 exurban commuters who hate taxes. The amount of historic socialism in this constituency is approximately zero. However, in service of their general discontent with tax increases, government policies and the European approach to Ireland's economic crisis, they have elected two Eurosceptic anti-tax populists (the Irish left always tells people they can have lower taxes and more government spending, though they stay away from anything controversial like actually explaining how they'd get the rest of the money).

Midlands-North West includes places like Dundalk, Drogheda, Athy, and, of course, Galway City... none of which fit that stereotype. I'd also question how conservative Ireland's conservative rural heartland really is.

Of course not everywhere fits a description. Of course there are exceptions to every rule. But it's important to see Ireland in context: its social policies, from schools to women's rights to marriage to divorce, espouse values at times far more conservative than the typical European voter, let alone the typical GUE-NGL parliamentarian. Those policies aren't just nasty impositions on a secretly liberal populace: they exist because lots of people support them and don't support changing them.

[Tetro Kornbluth]

Hahaha, amazing. For context, Midlands-North-West is 1/2 conservative rural Irish heartland stereotype, 1/2 exurban commuters who hate taxes. The amount of historic socialism in this constituency is approximately zero. However, in service of their general discontent with tax increases, government policies and the European approach to Ireland's economic crisis, they have elected two Eurosceptic anti-tax populists (the Irish left always tells people they can have lower taxes and more government spending, though they stay away from anything controversial like actually explaining how they'd get the rest of the money).

Midlands-North West includes places like Dundalk, Drogheda, Athy, and, of course, Galway City... none of which fit that stereotype. I'd also question how conservative Ireland's conservative rural heartland really is.

From tallying the European vote on the day of the local election count, the areas which elected the two Eurosceptic left-wingers were the "conservative rural heartland" areas, which have seen none of the supposed economic recovery that we continually hear trumpeted by our government and a largely pliant media, are watching their wages stagnate and their disposable income disappear as more and more financial demands are placed on them as the result of flat charges and service cuts, and are heartily sick of watching their children, siblings and neighbours leave for Australia and Canada.

We slack-jawed, straw-chewing, rednecks may still be conservative on a lot of issues but we're fed up with being patronised and walked upon.

Ummm... that was my point. I was replying to EPG. Seeing 'rural Ireland' (however do we define 'rural' anyway?) as a homogeneous whole is utterly ridiculous, I said nothing about where Ming's or SF's vote came from (although I do expect that they did well in Louth).

[Diouf]

The AfD has now officially joined the ECR group which puts them at 62 seats.

N/VA seems bound to join ALDE, but there is no confirmation of that yet.

Today the 5Star-Movement will have its online referendum on what to do group-wise. The options are EFD, ECR and NI. I wonder whether they will be allowed into ECR if that should be the outcome. It would perhaps be tempting for the ECR as it would clearly make them the third biggest group, but the maverick style of the party and the clear left-wing approach to things like environment and climate makes it unlikely I reckon.

https://twitter.com/ecrgroup/status/477013994407215104

[Middle-aged Europe]

The AfD has now officially joined the ECR group which puts them at 62 seats.

Merkel's gonna be pissed!

[YL]

Re Ireland, is there an obvious reason why the establishment parties did noticeably better in the South constituency?

[EPG]

Re Ireland, is there an obvious reason why the establishment parties did noticeably better in the South constituency?

There's no inherent sociological reason. The proximate cause was the strength of Crowley, the main Fianna Fáil candidate, and the weakness of the independents. It's possible that the absence of Leinster candidates helped Fine Gael a little, as the only party to field one.

And of course, I don't view 'rural Ireland' as a homogeneous whole, and of course, every individual is a precious snowflake, but general conclusions about large populations based on empirical evidence are incredibly useful in almost every field of activity, and it's foolish to explain GUE strength in Midlands-North-West without noting that actually, Roscommon people are not similar to Swedish Left Party voters.

[justfollowingtheelections]

The M5S results:

Gruppo EFD: 23.121 pari al 78,1%
Non iscritti: 3.533 pari al 11,9%
Gruppo ECR: 2.930 pari al 10%

They will probably have another vote in a couple of weeks when EFD fails to form a group.

[Tetro Kornbluth]

Re Ireland, is there an obvious reason why the establishment parties did noticeably better in the South constituency?

There were no good independent candidates really. Diarmuid O'Flynn was the best placed independent there and he couldn't afford posters. The establishment parties did better in places where there are little alternatives, something backed up from the locals. Also Brian Crowley has a  massive personal vote, independent of his Fianna Fail label.

[justfollowingtheelections]

You must be logged in to read this quote.

How can a party like that ally with a clown like Nigel Farage?  I bet any of its members that believe in the above principles will probably leave.  Either that or they should change their name.  Does Farage and the other climate change deniers in UKIP know what M5S stands for?