Politics

Centre-right alliance wins Danish elections

With nearly all the votes counted, former Danish Prime Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen can now call the elections for his centre-right coalition. After a tight race, it appears that the opposition bloc won by only one parliamentary seat over the ruling Social Democrats, capturing 90 seats to the centre-left coalition’s 89. With 100% of the mainland vote counted, the governing social-democratic coalition failed to secure enough seats in the 179-seat parliament that would allow it to stay in power. Despite garnering the biggest share of the vote, 26.3%, the Social Democrats saw their leader, Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt, resign and the ruling coalition crumble

Stalemate in EU migration talks

On Tuesday, 16 June, EU Home Affairs Ministers met in Luxembourg to discuss a plan to distribute asylum seekers more equally across the 28-member bloc. The scheme is part of the European Agenda on Migration, a bundle of several different and concrete measures proposed by the European Commission to respond to the current migration crisis. Over the last months, the number of migrants venturing across the Mediterranean in the hope of reaching Europe has skyrocketed. With little support from other member states, Italy and Greece have been left to bear the brunt of dealing with this influx of people. Both countries want other EU member states to help out and ease the burden

Romanian Prime Minister granted immunity

Under investigation for corruption, the Romanian Prime Minister, Victor Ponta, refuses to resign, declaring himself innocent. The National Anti-corruption Directorate (DNA) announced on Friday, 5 June, that it was investigating charges of conflict of interest, money laundering, forgery and tax evasion attributed to Romania’s Prime Minister on Friday and dating back to when he was working as a lawyer before assuming public office. For the investigation to proceed, the Prime Minister’s immunity as Member of Parliament should be lifted, something only the Parliament can do. In a secret ballot, the Romanian Parliament voted to maintain Mr. Ponta’s immunity

Cameron’s EU charm offensive

David Cameron has concluded a one week EU whistle-stop tour in his bid to reform the 28-nation bloc and win back powers from Brussels. Coming after a fresh win in last month’s general election, the British Prime Minister set out on a charm offensive to renegotiate Britain’s relationship with the Union ahead of the 2017 in-out referendum. His handpicked stops were few but telling as to whose support David Cameron is seeking. The Prime Minister kicked off a week of talks by meeting with EU Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker on 25 May. David Cameron did not miss the opportunity to “underline that the British people are not happy with the status quo and believe that the EU needs

New Finnish Government appointed

On 1 June, the President of the Republic of Finland Juha Sipila appointed the country’s 74th government. This moment marked the dismissal of Alexander Stubb’s cabinet and the coming into office of Sipila, who will be heading the new 14-minister government. The governing coalition will now consist of the Center Party with six ministerial posts, the Finns Party and the National Coalition Party, with four ministerial posts each. After weeks of cabinet formation talks, party leaders have agreed on a lineup which welcomes the return of ex-Prime Minister Alexander Stubb as Minister of Finance. Another party boss not leaving the negotiating table empty-handed is Timo Soini from the eurosceptic Finns Party

Andrzej Duda wins Polish presidential election

Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski conceded defeat in Sunday’s presidential elections. The exit polls showed him trailing his main challenger, Andrzej Duda, who managed to win 53% of the votes. The result marks a significant blow to the ruling Civic Platform and its leader and Prime Minister, Ewa Kopacz. Ripple effects are expected to be felt in the more important parliamentary elections due later this year. In Poland the Head of State has limited powers in comparison to the Prime Minister but Andrzej Duda may well promote a more skeptical approach towards the European Union and lay the groundwork for a right-wing win in the upcoming parliamentary elections

Unexpected results in Polish presidential election

Andrzej Duda pulled off a surprising upset over the incumbent Bronislaw Komorowski in the first round of the Polish presidential elections. According to the Polish Press Agency exit poll, the surge in support for the nationalist conservative candidate puts him in the lead with 34.8% of the vote. President Komorowski has been relegated to an unexpected second place after receiving only 32.2% of the total ballots cast. The two will meet again in the 24 May runoff since neither candidate managed to secure more than 50% of the vote. The results are all the more remarkable as opinion polls gave Mr. Komorowski a comfortable win over his contender

Clear victory for David Cameron in UK general election

The Conservatives’ sweep to victory in the 7 May general election means that a triumphant David Cameron will be back at 10 Downing Street without much hassle and without relying on a coalition partner to form the next government. The Tories’ 331 seats give him an outright majority, the first of its kind in over two decades. The Labour Party suffered a humiliating defeat and the Liberal Democrats were crushed beyond anybody’s expectation. In response to such a dismal outcome both Ed Miliband and Nick Clegg stepped down as party leaders, followed by Nigel Farage of the UK Independence Party, another underperformer in this year’s general elections

Electoral reform for more political stability in Italy

On Monday, 4 May, the Italian Parliament voted on legislation aimed at reforming the country’s electoral system. The overhaul, proposed by Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, seeks to put an end to a fragmented political scene that has ushered in four different governments since the beginning of this decade. A jubilant ruling coalition welcomed the Parliament’s approval of the bill by a vote of 334 to 61. Soon after the secret ballot came to a close and the votes were counted, an enraptured Renzi tweeted: “Commitment kept, promise fulfilled.” “Mission accomplished”, stated Reform Minister Elena Boschi

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