On June 9, the 370 million voters in the EU will determine the composition of the next European Parliament (EP).
The rise of the far right, the war in Ukraine and the Green Deal are some of the key themes around which the candidates have built their campaigns.
The rise of the far right
Opinion polls predict the rise of the far right.
This should benefit the two main far-right groups in the EP: the European Conservatives and Reformists, whose ranks include the "Italian Brothers" of Italian Prime Minister Giorgio Meloni, and the "Identity and Democracy" group, which threw out the politically scandal-ridden " Alternative for Germany (AfG), but remains home to Marine Le Pen's National Assembly.
One of the main questions is which of the two groups will join Fidesz, the party of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who, like Le Pen, maintains close ties to the Kremlin.
Together, the far-right forces could theoretically prevail over the largest parliamentary group, Ursula von der Leyen's centre-right European People's Party (EPP). However, they remain divided on several issues, including whether to support Ukraine in its fight against Russia.
Allocation of senior posts
After the election, the political balance of power will help determine who gets the top jobs in the EU's main institutions, most notably the European Commission (EC) and the European Council.
The leaders of the 27 member states will tackle this complex task at the summit on 27-28 June.
Von der Leyen is running for another five-year term as head of the EC and is seen as a leading contender.
But she will need not only the support of leaders but also the approval of the future EP, which could be complicated by her arrangements with Meloni, which have already angered allies on the left.
One of the names circulating as a possible alternative for EC chief is Mario Draghi, a technocrat who was Meloni's predecessor as prime minister and a respected former head of the European Central Bank.
The Green Deal
The EU has already made progress in its ambitions for a carbon-neutral future, passing legislation to phase out internal combustion cars, ban imports from deforested areas and introduce a border tax on carbon emissions.
But further initiatives are facing obstacles - from overburdened households, angry farmers and leaders calling for a "pause".
Von der Leyen's EPP sided with far-right parties to promise to ease environmental measures to help European industry and competitiveness.
Polls indicate that the Green group in the EP could lose around 40% of its seats. This is a clear sign that the environment is moving down the list of EU voters' priorities.
Ukraine
Russia's invasion of Ukraine has drawn the EU's attention to the need to bolster the bloc's defense industry, but it is struggling to find funds.
Brussels is proposing a €1.5 billion strategy to improve the performance of the defense sector, but it has yet to be agreed.
If it cannot be financed through joint borrowing, as was done to finance the post-Covid-19 recovery, the issue will be discussed in the new parliament when discussing the EU's long-term budget.
MEPs could also rule on Ukraine's prospects of one day joining the bloc, which is the leaders' main decision, but also requires a green light from parliament.
The national agenda
Although the elections are for MEPs, voters vote for national parties that are vying for seats in the legislature.
In France, President Emmanuel Macron's centrist Renaissance party is expected to be defeated by Marine Le Pen's far-right National Union.
That would deal an embarrassing blow to Macron, who seeks to be the voice of EU strategic thinking.
In Germany, where political energy is spent on maintaining the ruling coalition of the Greens, liberals and socialists, the far-right AzG party is on track to win around 15% of the vote, according to opinion polls. This would put her behind the conservative CDU-CSU alliance.
In Poland, Prime Minister Donald Tusk's pro-EU government, which took power late last year, has been campaigning in response to anger among the country's farmers, which has been fueled by the opposition Law and Justice.
In Slovakia, the vote will test support for the Russia-friendly government of Robert Fico, who survived an assassination attempt less than a month ago. | BGNES
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AFP analysis
