What changed

A. whereas the 2024 European elections registered the highest turnout of any elections to the European Parliament in the past 25 years, at 50.7450,74 % of the electorate, (a slight increase in comparison to 2019 with 50.6650,66 %), sending a positive and significant signal about European citizens’ interest in EU affairs; whereas participation figures varied widely among Member States, ranging from 89.0189,01 % to 21.3521,35 %, underlining the need for continued political investment in election participation across the EU;

R. whereas the 2024 elections show an overall decline in female representation across Parliament, with women now holding approximately 38.638,6 % of the seats, down from 40 % in 2019;

2. Welcomes the relatively high turnout for the 10th European elections, which, with an aggregate participation rate of 50.7450,74 %, saw a slight increase compared to the 2019 elections; is convinced that these figures reflect stronger public engagement with the European project and the increasing importance of Parliament and its impact on the daily lives of citizens; is nevertheless concerned by the widely divergent participation rates among Member States and remains determined to strengthen policy efforts to close the gap and increase turnout among all groups across the EU;

6. Highlights that the elections to Parliament might not have been fair in Hungary; stresses in this context that the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) Election Observation Mission Final Report for the parliamentary elections and referendum in Hungary on 3April3 April 2022 found the ‘absence of a level playing field’”;field’; stresses that the Hungarian Government bears responsibility for the restoration of compliance with EU law and the values enshrined in Article 2 TEU and expresses deep regret that the lack of decisive EU action has contributed to a breakdown in democracy, the rule of law and fundamental rights in Hungary, turning the country into a hybrid regime of electoral autocracy, according to the relevant indices; expresses concern about several requests by the Hungarian Central Investigative Prosecutor to lift the immunity of MEPs;