Elections 2019 Eurobarometer: Romanians among the most concerned Europeans when it comes to elections transparency

Romanians are among the most concerned Europeans when it comes to the transparency of elections, and they would like to receive more information and to see more young people standing as candidates in order to be motivated to go out and vote, according to the results of the latest Eurobarometer survey published on Monday, which sheds light on the expectations of Europeans for the May 2019 elections and what would motivate them to cast their vote. Persons who vote even though they have no right to vote are among the Romanians’ biggest concerns, the 66 percent result putting Romanian responders on first place in this case, in contrast to an EU average of 45 percent. Another concern regards persons who vote twice, an answer given by 62 percent of Romanians, the second-highest result in the EU, the European average standing at 44 percent. At the same time, another problem consists of people who are constrained to vote a certain way, a response given by 66 percent of Romanians, the third-highest result in the EU (EU average: 52 percent). Moreover, Romanians are concerned by the potential manipulation of elections via cyberattacks, an answer given by 66 percent of Romanian respondents – the third-highest result in the Union, behind Spain and United Kingdom, in contrast to an EU average of 61 percent. “Our research shows that people are really worried about disinformation. The good thing is that more and more citizens are critical of the information they are offered, and well aware of the dark forces that would like to manipulate what they read, think and ultimately vote for. For the legitimacy of our European democracy it is essential that citizens use their right to vote,” European Commission First Vice President Frans Timmermans said. The factors that persuade Romanians to cast their votes are: more young people standing as candidates (42 percent compared to EU average of 31 percent); better information regarding the EU and the Union’s impact on their lives (42 percent, EU average: 43 percent); more women standing as candidates (14 percent, EU average: 20 percent). When abroad, Romanians prefer to vote at the embassy/consulate, namely 43 percent of respondents, one of the top 4 percentages in the EU (EU average: 27 percent), and 32 percent of them would prefer to vote online (EU average: 42 percent), according to the survey.

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