Brussels, 18/03/2009 (Agence Europe) - The slogan of the European Parliament's communication for the June European elections is “European elections, it's your choice”. Mechtild Rothe (PES, Germany) explained that they were not telling citizens, “please go and vote! This time we are telling them why it is important to vote”. Ten of the main themes are included in all the official languages of the European Union in the form of questions such as: What should cars be run on? How can work and family life be reconciled? The EP has a budget of €18 million - 5 cents for each potential voter. The EP will itself have to choose what vector of information will be used to deliver its message to its targets. The message to young people under 25 and women will be highlighted. Television announcements and radio messages will be sent out throughout the EU, and the EP will attempt to use virtual sites to create columns on information sites such as Wikipedia and social networks like Facebook or MySpace. Visual support resources such as “choice boxes” and sculptures will be taken throughout Europe to increase visibility among European citizens. Asked about reservations expressed by the Italian authorities throughout this campaign, Alejo Vidal-Quadras (EPP-ED, Spain) sarcastically suggested that, “in this way, Italy has already begun the launch of its campaign!” He pointed out that democracy is based on the participation of citizens, but reaffirmed that the legitimacy of the next EP would not depend on voter turnout at these elections. The average rate of voter turnout in the 2004 European elections was 46%, with significant differences between member states. (M.B./transl.rh)