Although only eight of the 27 European countries have completed their count, some important trends are already visible. The Christian Democrats and the far right are the winners of the European elections, while the Liberals and the Greens are the big losers. This is evident from the preliminary results of the European elections. Despite the shifts, Christian Democrats, Social Democrats and Liberals retain their majority.
EPP largest
The European People’s Party (EPP), composed of Christian Democrats and conservatives, remains the largest group in the European Parliament. The EPP gains 8 seats to reach 184 seats. The social democratic group S&D gains 139 seats for now, remaining the second largest group. The Liberal Renew Group loses substantially (-23 seats) but remains the third largest with 402 out of 720 seats, keeping Christian Democrats, Social Democrats and Liberals in the majority.
The radical right thus gains significantly more seats in the European Parliament, but this does not necessarily mean a change in direction; in fact, the political center of the Parliament remains stable.
EPP and innovation
In the EPP’s Manifesto, Energy Section, the party advocates a technology-neutral approach to the development of new fuels, hydrogen technologies and powertrains for all vehicles, supporting new liquid fuels in particular. The goal remains to become the world’s first climate-neutral continent by 2050.
As for healthcare, the EPP wants Europe to “become the world leader in the healthcare sector, harnessing the potential of big data and AI to make the technological discoveries of the future.” And what about AI? The EPP sees its Europe leading digitization and promoting human-centered AI. “We want to enable, develop and use AI, not contain or hinder it through over-regulation.”
Nature Restoration Act?
With a tug to the right, the question remains how to proceed with the climate and sustainability goals. Much of the Green Deal has already been turned into legislation, but the European Nature Restoration Act is still on the shelf. The question is whether it will ever be picked up.
The situation in the Netherlands
Geert Wilders’ far-right PVV achieves the biggest gain, rising from 1 to 6 seats. However, the left-wing cartel of PvdA and GroenLinks ends up as the largest party with 9 seats. Volt gained a seat and now comes to 2 seats. In addition, NSC managed to gain 1 seat.
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