Dossier written by Emilie Melvin
European elections have been held every five years, and by direct universal suffrage since 1979. The Treaty of Amsterdam, which entered into force in 1999, lays down the general provisions providing a minimum harmonisation of national election practices. This means that members of the European Parliament are elected by proportional representation and the Member States can decide on a minimum threshold for a candidate or a list, not exceeding 5%. Since the...