European Parliament Elections 2024 - Friday, June 7th

MFPM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122084826#Comment_122084826

I have a TT account but not really a user, people send me videos and I dip in and out.

The first content you were shown was from an Irish MEP who has a significant Social Media profile it's nothing to do with 'extremes' though that notion is really tiresome and reductive. So I assume the algorithm directed that content to you for some reason based on your activity limited though it was on a new account. As your 'centrist' searches unfold you'll end up with that kind of content (my sympathies in advance 🤣) I assume, I'm far from an expert on these tech issues.

MFPM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122083375#Comment_122083375

You may have a point, but turn out in Euros in 2019 was basically 50%, I'd be surprised if it's much higher this time out? i haven't seen any indication that it will be higher, time will tell.

There may be more of a protest vote on issues like immigration but I think that issue is being hyped by the MSM, it may play out more at local level.

The IT had a poll last week on key themes affecting voters, Ukraine didn’t get a mention, and interestingly despite the relentless propaganda of the IT, some academics and a few politicians security and defence didn't register a percentage. Israel/Palestine was very low, so it's not clear how these issues will play out when it comes to people casting their vote.

Brussels Sprout

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122086629#Comment_122086629

I think we have established at this stage that you are a massive Clare Daly fan and feel the need to defend her honour whenever she is criticised. Well I'd imagine there will be plently more where that came from over the next month so you best get used to it.

MFPM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122087304#Comment_122087304

Jeez, you're sensitive! What, it's OK to dish out lazy reductive critique and not be challenged on it?

Last week I was kneeling at the altar of Rory Hearne, this week I'm a 'massive Clare Daly fan' 😀

Let's hope you're as consistent in criticising others who defend various candidates here...

fuzzy dunlop

I see Stephen Collins is worried that the proles won't vote the way their betters want them to.

https://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/2024/04/19/irish-voters-must-realise-that-sending-characters-to-strasbourg-could-harm-our-country/

MFPM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122088371#Comment_122088371

He's an embarrassment to his profession, he's incapable of objective analysis. He essentially writes the same column every week.

CrabRevolution

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122088371#Comment_122088371

While I'm 100% of the opinion that Daly and Wallace should be dumped, there's definitely a lot of fretting over how "wrong" the electorate is going to vote in these elections.

I read an article a few weeks ago on how an assortment of NGOs issued a statement that in the likely event of the EU Parliament gaining more right wing members, the other bodies of the EU need to work around this and continue implementing their favoured agenda, and not be held hostage to the Parliament. It really laid bare their attitude of "We only tolerate democracy up to the point where those we disagree with get elected, after which it needs to be undermined"

corkie

@L1011 @starlit

The south list has been posted, don't know when it happened?

https://corkcityreturningofficer.com/

I have a good idea whom I might vote for in that! Not going to vote all the way down the form, because don't want some unknown getting across the quota?

Just have to work out my Local elections choice.

Cluedo Monopoly

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122080321#Comment_122080321

I know. It really is an uninspiring list

I really hope none of the FF candidates get in. Especially Cowen. Chambers shouldn't get any votes on account of her antics after the referendum.

suvigirl

Can anyone state what exactly a person looking for election to Europe should be proposing? FG & SD just posted leaflets to the house, and there is no information on them as to what exactly they will bring to Europe, or why they should be elected.

SF in fairness are the only ones that actually knocked on the door, but SF are a no from me, in any election.

What advantage is there for anybody to have anyone in Europe, if you know what I mean? I have no interest in the likes of Clare Daly and Mick Wallace going have a great time & making plenty of money for themselves. I want to know, what can a member of the EU parliament actually do for me, or Ireland, and what should they be telling me at the door?

Widdensushi

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122091781#Comment_122091781

Sure it's more of a vote to keep the ones you dislike most out than anything for many this time around,,too few votes to have any consequence in Europe either way,, tired of those elected disappearing between elections, change em anyway if you can I reckon,it can't be worse.

corkie

@suvigirl Look at your choices of candidates and do a bit of research on them.

https://www.thejournal.ie/meps-explainer-4645877-May2019/ ~~ 2019 Article

The kinds of issues MEPs will vote on could include:

Working hours and other conditions for employees throughout the European Union;Access to healthcare in another EU country;The kinds of pesticides that are safe to use on food grown in the EU;How much you pay for mobile phone calls in other member states;Environmental issues like clean air and water.

MEPs can also question and lobby the European Commission and the Council of Ministers. And the European Parliament decides on the EU budget and influences how EU money is spent.

For an example in my choices, 'Una Mcgurk' history on google doesn't sound good.

suvigirl

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122091844#Comment_122091844

The gas thing is, their leaflets talk about social and affordable housing, among other non EU stuff! As if I think they can produce that from Europe! it's a joke really, they should be telling us what the advantage is for us, to vote for them.

Ive spent time in Brussels, I know people that work there, it's a very handy number for anyone that gets in, I understand that, but if still like to know who or what I'm voting for, and why I should vote for them.

MFPM

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122091781#Comment_122091781

All MEPs are paid the same rate and the same expenses, bizarre to single out two names on that front.

MEPs have little power, the Commission has much of the power, vote for someone who aligns with your broad political values.

suvigirl

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122091909#Comment_122091909

Thats not the reason I don't want to vote for those two, I understand it's a handy number for everyone elected. I wouldn't vote for either of them because I don't like what they have done and said since they got in.

corkie

@MFPM the Commission has much of the power

Is the Commission formed from votes of the MEPs?

https://www.europarl.europa.eu/factsheets/en/sheet/25/the-european-commission

B. Method of appointment

The Treaty of Lisbon stipulates that the results of the European elections have to be taken into account when the European Council, after appropriate consultations (as set out in Declaration 11 on Article 17(6) and (7) TEU as an annex to the Treaty) and acting by a qualified majority, proposes the candidate for President of the Commission to Parliament. This candidate is elected by Parliament by a majority of its component members (Article 17(7) TEU).

The Council of the European Union (hereinafter ‘the Council’), acting by a qualified majority and by common accord with the President-elect, adopts the list of the other persons whom it proposes for appointment as members of the Commission, on the basis of the suggestions made by Member States.

votecounts

Has any politician who is either a td or senator said what they will do if elected. Will they resign their seat or give ir to the resrve on the list

Quantum Erasure

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122080321#Comment_122080321

Ming, Maria Walsh, Peadar Tobin

Then Saoirse McHugh and Ciaran Mullooly

fuzzy dunlop

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122091424#Comment_122091424

And that is exactly it. I remember Questions and Answers back in the day, debating the Lisbon treaty. They had a panelist from some group with a lofty sounding name along the lines of 'The Europe Institute'. The panelist made a flippant comment along the lines of 'the nation state is is….so passe'. A typical NGO think tank. Well the nation state is making a serious comeback in my opinion.

I have never seen or heard anyone get misty eyed over the EU flag or Beethoven's 'Ode to Joy'. It's completely contrived. The EU has its uses but I can go along with only so much harmonization. I think when they added the 10 countries back in 2004 it was the beginning of the end. Most of these countries had only just escaped the clutches of the Soviet Union and one of them (Cyprus) is illegally partitioned by Turkey. The EU imo reached its natural limit in 1995 when Sweden, Finland and Austria joined. It has become increasingly unstable and authoritarian ever since. What I am hoping is that the current trends will signal a pushback against against federalization and repeal the part of the original treaty that commits everyone to one direction (integration).

L1011

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122091973#Comment_122091973

The commissioners are chosen by member states.

The MEPs chose the president. If you don't want UvdL to be re-elected you shouldn't vote FG basically

dulpit

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122092203#Comment_122092203

They have to resign. Peadar Toibin has apparently said he'll run in the next general election alright though. (I'm basing this on what the Irish Times political podcast said the other day)

Seth Brundle

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122092265#Comment_122092265

That's quite a mix of opposing policies there!

Podge_irl

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122092368#Comment_122092368

The Parliament has to approve the make up of the Commission no?

Peregrinus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122092368#Comment_122092368

Bit more than that. What you actually want is for another European political party to be the largest in the Parliament, rather than the EPP (with which FG is affiliated) — the spitzenkandidate of the largest party has a strong claim to be nominated as Commission President . The party with the best chance of eclipsing the EPP is the Party of European Socialists, and their spitzenkandidate is Nicolas Schmit. The the Labour Party is affiliated with the PES, so if your overriding objective is to cast your vote in a way that will reduce the likelihood of UvdL being renominated, a vote for Labour might be the way to go.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122092360#Comment_122092360

Given that position, you'd want to vote for a candidate affiliated with one of the more eurosceptic european political parties. Sadly, you're out of luck. While there are several european political parties that are either mildly or strongly eurosceptic, some of them are unpleasantly right-wing and none of them, so far as I know, have any Irish political party affiliated to them.

Peregrinus

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122092670#Comment_122092670

There are three bodies involved:

1. The European Council (which is made up of the heads of government of the member states) nominates the President of the Commission. In making the nomination they are required to take into account the European Parliament election results, which means that the candidate for President supported by the largest party in the Parliament has a strong claim, but not a strict entitlement, to be nominated.
2. The Council of the European Union (made up of ministers from the member states) nominates the other commissioners, in agreement with the President. One commissioner is nominated from each member state and in practice the national government chooses who will be nominated. Obviously, they need to nominate somebody who the President of the Commission can work with.
3. The European Parliament then gets to vote on the approval of the entire Commission. Strictly speaking this isn't a vote on the makeup of the Commission — the Parliament can't say "we approve of them all except X and Y"; just "we approve of the Commission that has been nominated" or "we don't approve of the Commission that has been nominated". But there are hearings before the vote at which the nominees can be questioned, so if there are problems with a particular nominee this will become apparent, and there can be some juggling of the make-up of the Commission in response to this before the Parliament votes on approval.

Worth adding that, even after approving the Commission, Parliament has the power at any time to dismiss the entire Commission by a vote of no confidence. This requires a two-thirds majority. This has never happened, though in 1998 the entire Commission did resign in order to avoid a vote of censure by the Parliament over a financial mismanagement scandal.

magicbastarder

...

https://independent.ie/irish-news/ex-broadcaster-and-euro-elections-candidate-niall-boylan-defends-interviewing-man-who-had-sex-with-dog/a683378770.html

L1011

It's amazing how easy it is to do a "smear campaign" when you have over a decade of objectionable audio and text content to choose from.

fuzzy dunlop

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122092704#Comment_122092704

The 'far right' bogey man doom mongering isn't working anymore. The main stream parties and media outlets have been throwing this around like snuff at a wake for too long for it to be effective any more. Anyway if threatening to vote for the far right pushes the likes of FG/FF and SF engage with their grass roots electorate then so be it. The Blairite politics that should have been given a funeral after the 2008 crash is the problem and everyone except the political class (until recently) knows it.

Furze99

To be honest, of this lot below I've heard minimal reportage. Wallace has been the most prominent, for all the wrong reasons. I'll actually campaign against him with neighbours and family. Kelly pops up every autumn with some spiel about clocks. Others invisible to this voter.

I'll look down the list of candidates and pick some semi sensible independent who is going to do something about EU border controls.

• Mick Wallace - I4C
• Billy Kelleher - FF
• Sean Kelly - FG
• Deirdre Clune - FG (retiring)
• Grace O'Sullivan - GP

Brussels Sprout

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122092870#Comment_122092870

Boylan's a fool if he didn't think his back catalogue was going to be weaponised against him. Given the tone of his show he had it coming and I'm sure there were plenty of people waiting in the long grass for him.

The thing is though - if his campaign catches fire it might do him no harm either. He can do the whole Trump "They're out to get me cos I'm speaking the truth" schtick and all it needs to do is work on 20% of the electorate.