Cost of living is citizens’ main concern at the start of the new legislature

This article is brought to you in association with the European Parliament.

The European Parliament released today the “EU Post-Electoral Survey 2024” looking at voting behaviour and the main priorities of EU citizens.

Rising prices and the cost of living (42%) and the economic situation (41%) were the main topics that motivated European citizens to vote in the last European elections in June this year. A third of voters (34%) say that the international situation was a topic that encouraged them to vote, while a similar proportion mentions defending democracy and the rule of law (32%). Those who did not vote also say the cost of living (46%) and the economic situation (36%) could have motivated them to participate in the elections.

European Parliament President Roberta Metsola, commenting on the results of the survey, says: “Last June, people across Europe made their voice count as we saw the highest turnout in the European Parliament elections in 30 years. They gave us a mandate to act, to provide answers and solutions and to make a positive difference in their daily lives. We will deliver. Over the coming weeks, the European Parliament is scrutinising the new European Commission to ensure it will address the issues that are a priority for people: the cost of living, the state of our economy, democracy, rule of law, migration and security. The European Parliament will continue to work to make people’s voice count in the EU.”

Support for EU and trust in parliamentary democracy high

Support for the EU remains high, despite economic woes. The results of the survey indicate that citizens are optimistic about the future of the EU (65%) and that they continue to hold a positive impression of the EU (48% with only 16% stating they have a negative image). EU membership is viewed in a favourable light, too. Seven in ten (70%) Europeans think that their country has benefited from being a member of the EU, a figure that has been stable in recent years. In the EU overall, there are four main rationales for why membership is considered beneficial: increased co-operation between Member States (36%), protecting peace and strengthening security (32%), the EU’s contribution to economic growth (28%), and the creation of new work opportunities (24%).

Trust in European parliamentary democracy is particularly high at the onset of the tenth EP parliamentary term: 42% of citizens have a positive image of the European Parliament – the highest ever recorded result for this indicator.

Europeans confirmed their support for EU democracy in the European elections last June. The turnout was 50,74%, the highest in 30 years and similar to that in 2019. It increased in 16 out of 27 countries compared to the 2019 European elections. That voting matters, is also confirmed by 56% of citizens who agree that their voice counts in the EU – an increase of 8 percentage points compared to February/March 2024 (48%).

Analysis of this post-electoral survey further suggests that voting in European elections becomes a habit for many citizens. When asked why they voted, 46% of voters say they always do, while 42% say it is their duty as citizens, and 20% say they want to support the political party they feel close to. The decision on whom to vote for in the European elections 2024 was mainly based on how close the proposals of the parties were to the ideas and values of the voters. Proposals of a given party on European issues were the most frequent reason to be selected at the ballot, given by 47% (+4 pp since 2019) of the voters.

Full results can be found here.

Background   

The European Parliament’s post-electoral Eurobarometer survey was carried out by Verian (previously Kantar Public) research agency between 13 June and 8 July 2024 in all 27 EU Member States. The survey was conducted face-to-face, with video interviews (CAVI) used additionally in Czechia, Denmark, Finland and Malta. 26.349 interviews were conducted in total. EU results were weighted according to the size of the population in each country. In addition to the weighting procedure based on socio-demographic variables (post-stratification weights on gender and age, region and urbanisation), the results for all questions related to the European elections in this post-election survey were weighted according to the actual national turnout.