USE YOUR VOTE – European elections in Germany on the June 9th, 2024
Sunday June 9th, 2024 is the date of the European election in Germany. We would like to motivate all European citizens in the Potsdam Science Park to inform themselves now about the election and to use their vote in the European elections. The right to vote as a fundamental democratic right is worthy of protection and cannot be taken for granted.
Voters will elect 96 Parliament Members in 2024. There is no statutory obligation to vote in the Federal Republic of Germany but every citizen has the right to contribute to the composition of the European Parliament through their vote in the election. Under EU law, all countries must use voting systems that ensure proportional representation, which means that the number of elected Members from each party depends on the share of electoral votes obtained by the party. In Germany, Members are elected in accordance with the principles of proportional representation based on Land lists of candidates. There may be Land lists of candidates for individual Länder or one list for all Länder.
Who is eligible to vote?
In Germany, you are eligible to vote if you
- have reached the age of 16;
- hold German or another EU citizenship;
- are resident in Germany and have also resided in the EU for at least three months;
- are entered in the electoral register (for the EU citizen).
Where can I vote?
German or EU citizen voting in Germany have to vote in a specific polling station based on their home address. The location of the polling station is indicated on your notification. You can, however, apply until June 7th for a polling card allowing you to vote by post or to go to another polling station of your administrative district or town (for example, in case your allocated polling station is not accessible). Information on voting by mail is published on the website linked below and in this Article (in German language).
German citizen voting abroad can vote by postal ballot subject to being registered in the voters’ register.
Information on the European election
Please find answers to numerous questions about the European elections in various languages here: elections.europa.eu/en/how-to-vote/de/.
Image Credit: Christian Lue via Unsplash