Is the European Union in Crisis? The Relationship between EU Citizenship and Direct Democracy and Its Impact on Democratic Legitimacy

Gábor Kurunczi

doi:10.2298/FID240327003K

Authors

Gábor Kurunczi Associate professor, Faculty of Law and Political Science, Pázmány Péter Catholic University, Budapest

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.2298/FID240327003K

Keywords:

European Union citizenship, right to vote, democratic legitimacy, direct democracy, referendum, European citizens’ initiative

Abstract

The crisis situation caused by pandemic COVID-19 and the effects of the war between Russia and Ukraine are also affecting the functioning of the European Union. From time to time, voices are raised questioning the existence of democratic legitimacy in the European Union. It is therefore important to examine how the concept of EU citizenship relates to the concept of right to vote, in particular, direct democracy. The institutions of direct democracy, and in particular, referendums, are the most general and most powerful form of direct exercise of power, since they enable the people themselves to decide on a matter directly. When looking at the system in the EU Member States, it is worth examining the issue of referendums at national and local level, in particular the importance of the concept of EU citizenship in determining the voters who participate in the referendum. In this context, it could be asked as a preliminary question whether it would be possible to introduce an EU referendum in which EU citizens could decide on an issue falling within the EU’s competence, or whether, similarly, a cross-border regional referendum could be envisaged in which EU citizens living in several countries could decide on a regional issue affecting several countries. It is also necessary, however, to examine an institution that is already in operation: the past, present and future of the European Citizens’ Initiative, with a view to whether it could become a kind of European referendum in the future

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