According to a survey carried out between March 18 and 21, 56% of Portuguese people still feel poorly informed about the electoral programs of political groups with seats in the European Parliament.
Around a third of respondents do not intend to vote and justify the lack of available information as one of the main reasons, according to a statement Deco Proteste.
“The decision on which party to vote for is made based on information from electoral programs (41%) or following the political party they support at national level”, indicate the results of the survey carried out within the scope of the EP elections. EP elections take place between June 6th and 9th in the 27 member states of the European Union (EU).
Regarding the function and way in which the EU operates, only 24% of Portuguese people feel that they are well informed, compared to 19% who revealed a general lack of knowledge about the EU.
“The most striking doubts relate to the way in which the number of EP deputies is determined and how they are elected, the rotation between countries of the European Council presidency and the way in which directives are approved”, highlights Euroconsumers.
Among the four countries involved in the survey – Belgium, Spain, Italy and Portugal – the Portuguese are those who most positively evaluate the EU's performance in the last five years (39% in Portugal, compared to 26% on average in the four countries analyzed).
In particular, they praise the performance during the Covid-19 pandemic, the management of which 68% of Portuguese respondents consider positive, can be read in the statement.
“On average, in the four countries, when asked about this specific matter, only 26% of respondents evaluate the EU's global activity in the last five years positively, while 34% evaluate it negatively”, highlights Euroconsumers.
Among the most criticized aspects in Portugal regarding the EU are inflation and the cost of living (73% rate it negatively in Portugal compared to 65% on average in the four countries), immigration (52%; 63%), war Israel/Palestine (45%; 53%) and the war in Ukraine (36%; 45%).
Meanwhile, political parties reached a consensus on the model for the television channels for holding six debates for the European elections. The first is scheduled for this Monday.
See here the calendar (in portuguese*):
*The debate on May 28 is between all parties in Parliament. The debate on May 30 is between all parties outside Parties.