CJEU: Union Citizens May Join Political Parties Abroad

Dec 13, 2024 Benn-Ibler Rechtsanwälte

EU Citizenship: The European Court of Justice has ruled that denying EU citizens the right to become members of a political party when they reside in a Member State of which they are not nationals is contrary to EU law.

In imposing such a condition of citizenship, two EU Member States have been found to be in breach of their obligation to ensure that nationals of EU Member States are treated equally in the exercise of their right to stand for election to municipal and European Parliament elections.

European Union law grants Union citizens residing in a Member State of which they are not nationals the right to vote and to stand as a candidate in municipal and European elections. The effective exercise of this right requires that these citizens have equal access to the means available to nationals of that Member State for exercising their right to vote. Membership of a political party is an important element in the exercise of the right to vote conferred by European Union law.

Under Czech and Polish law, only their own citizens are entitled to join political parties. The European Commission therefore considered that EU citizens residing in these Member States but not holding Czech or Polish nationality were prevented from exercising their right to stand as a candidate in municipal and European elections under EU law on the same conditions as Czech and Polish nationals.

The Commission considered this unlawful discrimination on grounds of nationality. It therefore decided to refer the matter to the European Court of Justice (CJEU) to be settled. The JCE has now upheld both actions, stating:

Political parties play a prominent role in the system of representative democracy. Consequently, those EU citizens are placed in a less favourable situation than Czech and Polish nationals as regards the right to stand as a candidate in municipal and European elections by reason of the fact that they are prohibited from belonging to a political party. These nationals are in a better position to stand as candidates in local and European elections because they can be members of a political party which has the organisational structures and human, administrative and financial resources to support their candidacy. In addition, membership of a political party is one of the criteria on the basis of which voters make their choice.

CJEU, C-814/21 (19 November 2024)