FIRST EUROPEAN PRESIDENTIAL DEBATE
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BACKGROUND OF THE EVENT
Since 1979 the European Parliament is the only directly elected parliament beyond the nation-state. Every five years, the citizens of the European Union elect the now more than 750 members of the EP – the legislature of the European Union that has over the past two decades become a powerful institution on par with national government who are represented in the Council, with equal say in all legislative matters and budgetary issues.
In 2014, the European electorate will go to the polls on 22-25 May, and this time – due to the changes that came with the Lisbon Treaty – there is an important new development: following the elections, for the European Parliament will for the first time elect the President of the European Commission, the EU’s executive.
For this reason, all the main parties of the EP have nominated leading candidates who are competing for the office of Commission President, making this election the first public race for a high office in the EU. The debate in Maastricht will be therefore be the first ever occasion on which all candidates come together to debate their ideas and answer questions from the public.
MODALITIES OF THE DEBATE: A FOCUS ON YOUNG VOTERS
You can register for the event here, follow the debate here, and join the discussion here.
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