The official and final turnout for the 2019 European elections is 50.66%, which is the highest rate since the 1994 European elections, the European Parliament announced in a report published on 29 October, after the 28 Member States had officially provided their final national turnout data.
This result represents an increase of 8.06 percentage points in comparison with the previous elections in 2014.
While national turnout increased in 19 Member States, the most significant increases took place in Poland, Romania, Spain, Austria, Hungary and Germany.
On the other hand, the turnout rate fell in eight Member States (Belgium, Malta, Luxembourg, Greece, Italy, Bulgaria, Ireland and Portugal), but never by more than 3 percentage points.
In addition, there are still significant differences between the Member States. The turnout rate is 88.47% in Belgium, where voting is compulsory, while it is only 22.74% in Slovakia, where turnout remains the lowest despite a 10 percentage point increase.
Moreover, although the average increase in the turnout rate is observed in all age groups in the population, this increase is much higher among young people and new voters (+14% for young people under 25 years of age and +12% for those aged 25-39). As a result, even if older people remain more likely to vote, the turnout gap between age groups is narrowing.
Regarding the reasons for voting, the most common answer is that it is a duty as a citizen (for 52% of respondents). Only a quarter of respondents (25%) replied that they voted in the European elections because they are "in favour of the European Union" and only 18% believe that they made this choice because voting in the elections can "make things change".
To view the European Parliament's post-election report 2019: https://bit.ly/2WoUlqf (Original version in French by Damien Genicot)