ABSTRACT
Using both aggregate-level and novel individual-level data from the RECONNECT project, this chapter assesses to what degree voting patterns in the 2019 EP election were characterized by second-orderness. The chapter addresses the following research questions: (1) Was the 2019 EP election truly ‘European’ in terms of its content? (2) Were citizens particularly moved by it? And if so, what drove this engagement? (3) Did citizens take European issues into account when deciding how to vote? Or alternatively, as is the traditional view of European election contests, did voters use them as an opportunity to express dissatisfaction with the governing party or coalition? Overall, the results presented in this chapter suggest that, though still not first-order, the 2019 EP elections nevertheless appear to have taken a modest step in this direction. These findings are discussed within the broader context of the first-order/second-order debate and in relation to the democratic legitimacy of the European Parliament.
