Misery for social democrats as voters take a turn to the right

Monday 8 June 2009

The European mainstream centre-left parties suffered humiliation in the EU’s biggest-ever election. The results from the national rounds of the European parliament election across the twenty-seven member states also showed support for centre-right Christian democrats diminishing in places. In Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Poland, Austria, Bulgaria, Hungary and the Czech Republic, the centre right won the elections. The result was slightly worse than a dismal performance five years ago that all the opinion polls had predicted would not be repeated. Anti-Brussels candidates and Eurosceptics also won more seats in Denmark, Finland, Austria and the Czech Republic. Analysts noted that the protest votes and victories for the right parties could also be ascribed to an election campaign in which leaders of key countries failed to project any persuasive pro-European vision in the midst of the most worrying economic crisis ever experienced by voters. Of the 736-seat assembly the centre right will have around 270 sets to the socialists 160.
The damning popular verdict on that assertion was the lowest turnout in thirty years. It was estimated at around 43%, compared with 45% last time, and 62% in Europe’s first election in 1979.

I did not vote for the European Parliament, because I did not know anything about the parties and their political views.