European Political Parties in the EU Party Politics

Preface

The European Union misses a political vision for its future. The finalité politique of the integration process remains unknown, and it is unclear which actor or institution should advance complementary visions for the future of the Union.

This discussion does not have a mere normative scope. The conflict in Ukraine, the emergence of new regional powers, and the transition towards a chaotic multipolarity should represent a wake-up call for European and national elites. While it is reasonable to protect the supranational achievements and the EU values in a time characterized by the resurgence of nationalism, at the same time, the European and national elites must take concrete actions to enhance the democratic legitimacy of the Union. At this moment, citizens are largely detached from the EU politics. Little effort has been made to create a political representational linkage between European politics and citizens, and even less has been done to increase EU awareness among the population.

The linkage between the EU institution and the citizens is an essential precondition for political integration. Delegating strategic competencies at the European level will be complicated without a supranational legitimate centre of power. For instance, the war in Ukraine and the populist drift of US politics have prioritized integration in security and defense matters. From a realistic point of view, building a European army is unfeasible without a supranational legitimate executive capable of setting clear geopolitical strategies and providing quick directions. Neither is it realistic to expect that in a time of crisis, defense decisions would be made by twenty-seven national executives, who would be ideologically divided and acting according to domestic interests. Likewise, it is naïve to believe that the integration process can move forward in a context characterized by the citizens’ inability to comprehend the nature, functioning and competencies of the European institutions and, consequently, with limited capabilities to monitor, assess and sanction the EU institutional actors.

This scenario is even more concerning as European integration is the only viable option on the table of the European member states. Moving from ideological orientations to rational considerations, European nation-states have gradually lost relevance in world affairs since the end of the Second World War. Economic, political, and social integration is the only solution to retaining global influence and preserving national sovereignty.

The main argument of this volume is relatively simple and, for some readers, out of fashion. Any democratic regime needs an active and performative party system. Political parties act as intermediaries between institutions and society, articulating and representing the people’s interests. Currently, the European political parties act as umbrella organizations. They are not in a position to connect the citizens with the EU institutions. They are largely unknown to the population and unable to conduct grassroots political activities. The European Commission has promoted initiatives fostering participative democracy and financing civil society organizations. Nonetheless, civic activism and participative democracy can only be a supportive element for the democratic life of a political community. In other words, civil society organizations cannot perform the tasks traditionally fulfilled by political parties.