The EU elections by numbers

The EU elections by numbers

BRUSSELS (AFP) - Voters from the EU’s 28 member states head to the polls this week for the ninth time since 1979, to elect their representatives to the European Parliament.

Five numbers help capture the Europe-wide elections being held from May 23 to 26:

427 million 

The estimated number of eligible voters in the EU’s member states making the European elections the second biggest democratic contest in the world, after India, according to the European Parliament.

Voting rights are granted to citizens aged 18 or older in most member states, but Greeks can vote at the age of 17 and Austrians and Maltese at 16.

42.6 percent 

The 2014 turnout rate, the worst ever recorded in a European election.

European participation steadily declined since the first vote in 1979, when it reached 62 percent.

It fell below the 50 percent threshold in 1999. In 2014, Belgians were proportionally the most numerous to vote, with 89.7 percent of the vote, followed by Luxembourgers (85.6 percent). But voting is compulsory in these two countries, as well as in Bulgaria, Cyprus and Greece.

The lowest participation rates were shown by the Slovaks at 13.1 percent, Czechs at 18.2 percent and Poles with 23.8 percent.

751 

The number of MEPs who will take office in the elections.

The distribution of seats is proportional to population: Germany will have 96 MEPs, France 74, Italy and Britain 73, while Malta, Cyprus and Luxembourg will have only six.

Once the United Kingdom leaves the EU, there will only be 705 MEPs in the chamber. Some of the British seats will be redistributed -- France and Spain will win five, Italy and the Netherlands three -- and some will be mothballed until new member states join.

Despite deep uncertainty over Brexit, countries set to gain seats will vote for these additional MEPs in the May election, but the winners will only take office once the divorce is official -- if that ever happens.

53 

The average age of MEPs in the 2014 election, as calculated by parliament, in a year that Europeans elected a 26-year-old Dane and a 91-year-old Greek.

In about half of the member states, candidates must be at least 18, but some countries have more stringent rules: in Italy and Greece, the minimum age is 25 years, while in Romania, 23.

36.9 percent 

 The proportion of women elected to parliament in 2014 was just over a third, the most ever.

Since the first election in 1979, when the parliament was only 16.3 percent women, this share has risen steadily.

Parity or better is currently achieved in only five member states: Finland (10 seats out of 13), Ireland (six out of 11), Croatia (six out of 11), Malta (three out of six) and Sweden (10 out of 20).

Cyprus (one of six), Bulgaria (three of 17) and Lithuania (two of 11) are the worst performers.