The European Union has launched a video campaign ahead of the 2024 European Parliament elections, aiming to galvanise voters, especially the young, with the aim of “saving democracy”.
The initiative, distributed across all official EU social media platforms, with alternate versions tailored for TV, cinema, radio, and social media in each Member State, seeks to inspire European citizens to exercise their voting rights.
On X, the EP cautioned against complacency, saying European citizens “should not take democracy for granted”.
We should never take democracy for granted.
Use your vote. Or others will decide for you.
#UseYourVote #EUelections2024 pic.twitter.com/eH5ukiLzxI— European Parliament (@Europarl_EN) April 29, 2024
With the tagline Use Your Vote. Or others will decide for you, EU officials underscored the importance of taking part in the elections.
The video explores the history of many European countries that have experienced armed conflict or attacks on individual freedom, emphasising the importance of European democratic systems.
With the 2024 EP elections seen as a potentially transformative moment for the EU, concerns about foreign interference loom large.
The threat of Russian “interference” in the upcoming EU elections is a serious risk, the European Commission’s Vera Jourová has warned. https://t.co/pNQ90uKrU6
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) April 19, 2024
In a press release, EU officials highlighted EP President Roberta Metsola’s statement: “European Union democracy is more important today than ever. Everyone’s vote matters,” she said.
“It will decide the direction our Union will take for the five coming years. It will decide what Europe we want to live in.”
This latest effort to mobilise voters is part of a broader campaign by the EU. Earlier in April, officials encouraged young voters to cast their ballots in the upcoming elections, in part to counter the potential rise of populist movements across Europe.
EU officials are rallying young voter turnout with initiatives like #EuropeanYouthWeek in the hopes of countering a potential surge of Europe’s “populist” movements. https://t.co/DfH2FnCWEV
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) April 12, 2024
The video campaign coincided with an apparent surge in interest in the EP elections.
According to a Eurobarometer survey released in mid-April, public enthusiasm for the elections has surpassed that of the previous vote five years ago.
Approximately 60 per cent of respondents indicated a “great deal” of interest in the elections, marking a notable increase from the 49 per cent recorded before the 2019 vote.
