Latest news with #EuropeanElections
The Journal
20-05-2025
- Politics
- The Journal
Social Democrats to table Bill to reduce voting age to 16
THE SOCIAL DEMOCRATS will later table a Bill seeking to reduce the voting age in Ireland from 18 to 16. Soc Dems TD Aidan Farrelly is the party's spokesperson for children, equality and youth. He will introduce the Bill today and remarked: 'People aged 16 and 17 are as civically informed as their peers aged over 18, but are unjustly restricted when it comes to democratic participation. 'If one can work full time and pay taxes, it is only fair to afford that person with the formal opportunity to influence how these taxes are spent, locally and nationally.' He noted that reducing the voting age to 16 was one of the recommendations of the Convention on the Constitution in 2013-2014. Ahead of last June's local and European elections, Fianna Fáil Senator Malcolm Byrne had called for the voting age to be lowered to 16 in time for polling day. A Bill sponsored by Byrne and fellow Fianna Fáil Senators Mary Fitzpatrick and Erin McGreehan which would lower the voting age to 16 for local and European elections is currently before the Seanad . Advertisement 'The last government was to consider reducing this change in time for the Local and European Elections in 2024, but failed to do so,' said Farrelly. He said the Bill he will table seeks to facilitate a reduction in the voting age in time for this year's Presidential Election. Farrelly also noted that 16-year-olds were able to vote in the 2014 Scottish Independence referendum and that 16-year-olds can vote in Welsh Parliament and local elections. 'Our youth should be able to participate in our democratic processes, the outcomes of which will affect their lives as much as anyone else's, and more than some,' said Farrelly. While he acknowledged that some 16 and 17-year-olds would not vote if able to do so, he noted that this is also the case for those aged over 18. 'We should focus on the many thousands who care about their communities and their society, who are as passionate about politics, public administration and civic duty as their older peers,' said Farrelly. 'The Reduction of Voting Age to Sixteen Years Bill 2025 is an opportunity to tell the 16 and 17-year-olds of Ireland that they and their voices are valued, that they're trusted, that their insight is needed for the future of this country.' This will be Farrelly's first Bill as a TD and he said that it is 'one of inherent importance to me as a citizen of Ireland, a youth worker, and a father'. Readers like you are keeping these stories free for everyone... A mix of advertising and supporting contributions helps keep paywalls away from valuable information like this article. Over 5,000 readers like you have already stepped up and support us with a monthly payment or a once-off donation. Learn More Support The Journal
Al Jazeera
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Europe's political centre holds in weekend of elections
It was called Super Sunday – three elections in European Union nations on the same day. All eyes were on Romania's presidential run-off – a crucial vote for the NATO member, in which a centrist victory has been welcomed by the EU and Ukraine. In Poland, the governing party's pro-EU candidate and his right-wing nationalist rival are set for a decisive second-round vote in June. But the centrist Warsaw mayor's slim lead means the country could still lean towards populism. Perhaps the biggest change was in Portugal, where the centre-right alliance won snap parliamentary elections as the far right won a record number of votes. Europe's political centre appears to be holding but for how much longer? And will these results reassure an EU seeking respite from the turbulence of populist politics? Presenter: Adrian Finighan Guests: Pieter Cleppe, editor-in-chief, Piotr Buras, head of the European Council on Foreign Relations Antonio Costa Pinto, professor of political science, University of Lisbon
Telegraph
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Maga-styled parties given bloody nose in round of European elections
When The Telegraph sat down with Romania's far-Right candidate for the presidential elections, he proudly proclaimed that 'the wave of the Maga movement is here in Europe'. But on Monday morning, George Simion was licking his wounds after suffering defeat to a pro-EU centrist, with similar election results also filtering in from Portugal and Poland. On Sunday, three EU member states held crucial elections seen as a test for the political centre, with pro-Donald Trump, Right-wing candidates hoping to import his cut-throat style to the continent. But the tactic hasn't worked. In Romania, self-styled Maga (Make America Great Again) firebrand Mr Simion hoped to beat Nicușor Dan, the liberal pro-EU mayor of Bucharest, in the second round of the presidential elections. The vote was a rerun of the November presidential elections, which were annulled due to suspicions that Russia had influenced them in favour of pro-Putin candidate Călin Georgescu. In Poland, right-wing party Law and Justice [PiS], which was exceedingly close to Mr Trump during his first term in office, jostled for power with Civic Platform, Donald Tusk's ruling centrist party, for the role of president. And in Portugal, the hard-Right, anti-corruption Chega party was up against the Socialists and Democratic Alliance, the centre-Right ruling party. To the relief of EU leaders, and to the disappointment of the Trump camp, all three centrist candidates swept to victory in their respective polls - albeit by an extremely narrow margin in the case of Poland, where a run-off will be held. Mr Trump has long sought to boost the profile of far-Right, anti-EU populist movements in Europe, as he considers them natural political bedfellows. Like him, they feel that the centrist rulers of Europe are grossly complacent on hot-button issues such as mass-migration. Some share his more sympathetic view towards Vladimir Putin and Russia. The US president has also tried unsuccessfully to shift the odds in his favour in Greenland – where the centrist Democrats won by a landslide, apparently thanks to voters who oppose Mr Trump's desire to take over the territory. Likewise in Canada, the Trump administration-backed Conservative Party was trounced by Mark Carney – the anti-Trump liberal poster boy, and former governor of the Bank of England,. It is also no secret that Europe's current crop of centrist leaders, such as Emmanuel Macron, loathe populism: they view it as a con which offers, but cannot deliver, fast and easy solutions to complex problems. They will no doubt feel emboldened by this set of results, which counters the White House narrative that European countries are embracing Trumpian populism one by one. In future dealings with Mr Trump, they can bring up this set of results in response to suggestions that the centrists don't really have the democratic backing of the people. Some of Mr Trump's closest allies, including Elon Musk, the tech billionaire, aggressively campaigned on behalf of the far-Right populist Alternative for Germany [AfD] party during February's federal elections. The Trump administration's support was so brazen that JD Vance, the vice-president, snubbed a meeting with Olaf Scholz, the then chancellor, at the Munich Security Conference and instead paid a visit to Alice Weidel, the AfD leader. The gambit did not pay off, with Friedrich Merz's centre-Right Christian Democrats [CDU] instead emerging as the victor. Nor did it yield results on Sunday in the cases of Romania, Poland and Portugal. On Monday, it was Mr Merz's turn to send congratulations: 'Romania affirmed its commitment to a strong and secure Europe: Dear [Mr Dan] congratulations on your election victory!' he wrote in a Romanian language post on X. While the champagne corks might have been popping in Brussels on Monday, these results also carried a warning to the centrists: in Portugal, the far-Right Chega party secured its best-ever result with 22 per cent of the vote. It is likely to become the second largest party in parliament. That result mirrors the success of the AfD, now the de-facto opposition in the Bundestag, the German parliament, having won 20 per cent of the vote in February. Chega's success appears to be mainly drawn from railing against corruption, with leader André Ventura vowing to clean up Portuguese politics. Ironically, the party has had to expel or discipline members for being caught up in precisely the kind of sleaze scandals it opposes. One MP has already been kicked out of the party for stealing suitcases at airports, another member has been caught drink-driving, and a third has been charged with paying for oral sex from an underage teenager. None of this seems to have turned off pro-populist voters in Portugal, which is perhaps no surprise: Mr Trump himself has weathered countless sleaze scandals over the past nine years. In Poland, the results paint a much more mixed picture, even if the centrist candidate came in first place, as neither party won an outright majority. That means a run-off will be held in Poland on June 1, allowing Karol Nawrocki, the Right-wing PiS candidate, a chance at overtaking Rafał Trzaskowski, the centrist who is backed by Donald Tusk, the prime minister. 'Nawrocki's victory would undermine Tusk's political project and could be the harbinger of PiS' return to power in 2027 or even earlier in case of a snap election,' said Piotr Buras, a senior fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations. 'In the medium term, disintegration of Tusk's coalition could be one of the consequences.' He added: 'The campaign in the next two weeks will be very polarizing and brutal, a confrontation of two visions of Poland: pro-EU, liberal and progressive versus nationalist, Trumpist and conservative.' Back in Bucharest, however, Mr Simion does not seem too brutally disappointed by the results – and seems to view them as a temporary setback.
Bloomberg
19-05-2025
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Trio of European Elections Keep Center Intact With Right on Rise
Welcome to the Brussels Edition, Bloomberg's daily briefing on what matters most in the heart of the European Union. The Donald Trump factor rippled through European elections on Sunday. Surging turnout helped a centrist candidate fend off a far-right victory in Romania's closely watched presidential election. Nicusor Dan, an independent candidate, won with 54% of the vote, defeating George Simion, leader of the Alliance for the Unity of Romanians. The result was closer in the first round of Poland's presidential election, with the centrist Warsaw mayor on track for only a narrow victory over a pro-Trump nationalist to face a runoff in June. Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro's center-right coalition clung to power in a snap election, though still fell short of a majority. Far-right party Chega was projected to strengthen its position, with results indicating it could overtake the Socialist Party to become the second largest group in parliament. All told, the results were a sigh of relief for the center, though the far right continues to strengthen its grip in opposition.
Sunday World
06-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Sunday World
DJ and ex-election candidate reveals ‘valuable life lesson' he learned after month in hospital
'I spent 60 years of my life feeling well, so to suddenly face multiple problems at once feels completely alien to me' DJ and former election candidate Niall Boylan has revealed how he 'learned a valuable life lesson' having spent nearly a month in hospital. The 'shock jock' who had left his Classic Hits radio show, Nighttime Talks to run in the European Elections last year, told fans he was 'recovering slowly'. Without referring to the reason why he ended up in hospital, he did say that over the last five months he had 'been unwell'. 'At one point, I was very ill and spent nearly a month in hospital,' he posted on X. 'My wife has been by my side and my support through it all. Why am I telling you this? Because I've learned a valuable life lesson.' He said the lesson he had learned was that 'many of those you thought cared about you couldn't give a s**t, and many people you least expected turned out to care the most.'. 'The other lesson is, don't always trust the medical profession. In my case, they had no idea what was wrong with me, even after literally hundreds of blood tests, CT scans, and ultrasounds, until I demanded certain specific blood tests (long story), and I was right.' He added: 'Thankfully, I'm recovering, but it's a slow process and hard to deal with. I spent 60 years of my life feeling well, so to suddenly face multiple problems at once feels completely alien to me. 'You do wonder if you'll ever normal again.' Last year, Boylan described his run for Europe as 'an experience of a lifetime' although he ultimately fell short, earning 50,416 votes. He also ruled out a general election run despite having 'no doubt' he would be elected after just narrowly missing out on an MEP seat. He laughed off the suggestion of launching a presidential run as he is 'very opinionated' and also ruled out running for European election again in five years' time. 'It was an amazing experience – and I kept the Green Party out. I was happy that I kind of upset the political establishment because I made it more difficult. There was about 50,000 votes that I took away from Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil. If I hadn't been there, they may have got the quota quicker.' Boylan, who feels there should be stronger curbs on immigration into Ireland and believes people are sick of 'woke culture', said he knows some people view him as an extremist but denies that is the case. 'People think I'm some sort of radical right-winger, I'm not. I voted yes to marriage equality.' He said he did feel that the EU was too left-wing. 'I think for far too long it's been far too left. I think that's going to change and you're going to see a shift slightly to the centre. I don't want to see a radical extreme right-wing Europe either.' Boylan added that got a lot of abuse online during the campaign because of his outspoken views. 'I've been a pretty loud outspoken voice for 30 years on radio and I tend not to care what other people think of what I say. I'm not politically correct and I want to be a loud voice for people in Dublin and Ireland in Europe 'There was some really nasty stuff put up about me online, most of it, 99.99 percent, completely untrue. Some of it was derogatory and defamatory. 'I didn't react to it. You just can't have that kind of stuff knocking you off your target. I only realised [during the campaign] how toxic Twitter was, I knew it was toxic, but I didn't realise how toxic it was.'
