On 6 June, the Netherlands will vote for the European Parliament. But what are these elections really about? And what does the European Parliament actually do for us, anyway? We asked our researchers — both political scientists and communication researchers — for answers to pressing questions surrounding the European elections.

We often hear that what happens ‘in Brussels’ is complicated. What exactly are the European elections?

Dr Rosa Sanchez Salgado (Associate Professor of European Politics) explains: ‘Whereas in national elections you elect a government, in the European elections you vote for members of the European Parliament. These Euro MPs are important because they make laws on current issues such as climate and migration. They do this together with the European Council, which largely consists of the heads of government of EU countries. Together, they control the European Commission, which is the executive body of the European Union. This Commission is responsible for implementing EU policies and enforcing established laws in all EU member countries.’

Seats in the European Parliament are also distributed quite differently than in the Dutch government. How are the seats distributed?

Salgado: ‘The parliament has 720 MPs, divided proportionally among all countries based on population. This means, for example, that Germany has 96 seats, France 81 and Italy 76. The Netherlands has 31 seats, which are filled based on the parties voted for by the country’s residents. The countries with the smallest populations are given a few extra seats, because otherwise they have too little influence. You can read more about the seat distribution on the European Parliament’s website.’

In the European elections, you cannot vote for a head of government directly. How is the leader of the European Commission chosen?

‘The president of the Commission must be nominated by the European Council. Before MPs can vote for a particular candidate, the Council has to nominate that person. The choice is fairly limited, but by electing a European Parliament, we are indirectly influencing the elected president of the European Commission.’

Why do you think it is important to vote in these elections?

Salgado: ‘Your vote has a direct impact on the European Parliament. And this parliament plays a tremendous role in drafting European legislation. For example, the EU has taken important decisions on gas and nuclear power in the context of climate change. The EU also ensured that Google had to pay a fine of over €4 billion for unfair competition against Android.’

The European elections don’t seem to be a very big deal in the Netherlands. How are the media covering these elections?

Dr Katjana Gattermann (Assistant Professor of Political Communication and Journalism) says: ‘In general, there is less media coverage of European elections than national elections. The EU is often seen as an institution where less is at stake than in elections for a national government. You can also see this attitude among Dutch political parties: they put a lot less money into their European campaigns than into their national campaigns.’

Rachid Azrout (Assistant Professor of Political Communication) continues: ‘Many people automatically assume that the central power lies at the national level. As a result, the public debate often revolves around “relinquishing power” to the European Union. As a result, Dutch people value Europe less and are less likely to seek out information about Europe.’

‘News outlets have an interest in delivering news that people want to see, to get the subscribers and ratings they need to survive. As long as the European elections fail to attract much buzz, they won’t be at the top of a news outlet’s agenda. Research conducted by NOS showed that a substantial proportion of viewers changed the channel when the news started reporting on the European elections.’

Gattermann: ‘The commercial aspect also makes the media eager to cover politics as a kind of sporting event, with lots of conflict, personalities, polls and scandals. These elements often do not feature heavily in European elections, compared to national elections. This also explains why many media outlets are now focusing on the seats that radical right and far-right parties stand to gain in the upcoming elections.’

Thanks to the rapid development of Artificial Intelligence, it seems easier than ever to create and spread disinformation and fake news. Is that a factor in these European elections?

Claes de Vreese (Professor of Artificial Intelligence & Society) explains: ‘There is definitely a lot of disinformation going around in this election period. One organisation that clearly demonstrates this is the European Digital Media Observatory (EDMO). They provide daily updates on disinformation surrounding the elections.’

How can you recognise and avoid disinformation and fake news about the elections?

De Vreese: 'That’s quite tricky, because the technology needed to produce disinformation is getting more advanced all the time. Still, a standard formula applies in most cases: Does the information come from a political group with the specific intent of damaging institutions or candidates? If so, take a moment, reflect and ask yourself whether the information seems credible to you and whether want to share it with others.’