Improving turnout in European parliament elections through the use of a uniform electoral system

Abstract

This dissertation deals with the question of declining voting turnout in European Parliament elections and how such a problem can be rectified with a uniform electoral system. The aims of this dissertation are twofold. The first aim is to come up with a feasible system which could be implemented throughout all Member States of the European Union. The second aim will look at the implementation of such a system and what problems would such a system face in order to be implemented. The dissertation will be divided into three chapters. The first chapter will deal with literature review and the historical development of the issue at hand. The second chapter will be an analysis of a proposal for uniform electoral procedure brought forward by Simon Hix and Sara Hagemann. The third chapter deals with the way such a system could be implemented and what problems could be faced in implementing such a system. This will be done by looking at two case studies namely Malta and Germany.