4International agreements & consent·decision 4 of 27 on Wednesday, 29 April 2026
Amendment of the European Electoral Act allowing Members to vote in plenary by proxy voting during pregnancy and after giving birth
Committee report by Juan Fernando López Aguilar · Parliament can approve or reject the text, for example an international agreement, but cannot amend it. · voted at 13:14
Treaties and agreements Parliament can only approve or refuse as a whole — no amendments are possible.
The draft Council decision amends the European Electoral Act to let MEPs who are pregnant or have recently given birth vote by proxy in plenary for up to three months before the expected birth and six months after. Parliament gave its consent to the Council's position, which also says the MEP statute and Parliament's rules should set out the general and detailed conditions for such delegation. The reform will enter into force after member states approve it according to their constitutional requirements.
One day of voting in plenary. Each subject is a report, resolution, agreement or objection; they are grouped by kind of decision, and each group says what “adopted” means there.
The ballots
Members vote on amendments and on parts of the text first, then on the text as a whole. That final, decisive vote is the result shown at the top of each subject.
Who voted how
Only roll-call votes record each Member’s vote — open one for every name and the breakdown by group. A show of hands records the outcome only.
Document & procedure
Each subject rests on a document (a committee report, a motion, a Council or Commission text) and belongs to a procedure, the whole file that can span years.
Group badges
How most of a group voted: ✓ For · ✗ Against · – Abstained · ~ Split (no majority).
Codes in ballot labels
Am 27 — amendment 27
§ 5 — paragraph 5
§ 5/2, part 2 — a A paragraph or amendment voted in separate parts, so groups can back one part and oppose another., taken in parts
Am 3= 7= — identical amendments voted together
***I — Parliament’s first vote on a proposed EU law. It sets Parliament’s position for negotiations with the Council.; *** — Parliament can approve or reject the text, for example an international agreement, but cannot amend it.; * — Parliament gives its opinion on a proposal. The Council decides, but must wait for Parliament’s opinion.
Lapsed — Not put to a vote, because an earlier vote already settled the matter.