Founded in 1992, Sussex European Institute (SEI) is the leading research and postgraduate training centre on contemporary European issues. SEI has a distinctive philosophy built on interdisciplinarity, a broad and inclusive approach to Europe, policy-relevance at the academic cutting edge, and...

This study describes both the European framework and national provisions on electoral procedures in the Member States of the European Union, including recent developments such as the creation of European Political Parties and the reform of the Electoral Act of 1976. For each country the most...

Independent candidates remain marginal vote-getters in the vast majority of elections in which they compete. However, they do regularly win seats in legislative assemblies in a number of European countries, and occasionally achieve surprise victories in others. Half of the EU member states...

Some financial products facilitate (“Financial Instruments”’) the use of voting rights that can be considered questionable under the law (“Questionable Uses of Voting Rights”). These Questionable Uses of Voting Rights become apparent when, using the Financial Instruments, an investor...

Following each election in the European Parliament, the European Commission issues a report examining how EU citizens' rights were enforced and how the relevant EU rules were implemented by the Member States and assessing EU citizens' participation and the overall conduct of the elections. The...