The European Parliament
The European Parliament is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union. The Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) are directly elected by citizens of the EU Member States every five years. The next European elections will be held in 2029.
Each Member State conducts the elections in accordance with its national legislation.
The maximum number of Members of the European Parliament is 751. A maximum of 96 and a minimum of six MEPs are elected in each Member State.
The European Council decides on the number of MEPs to be elected and on the division of seats between the Member States upon proposal of the European Parliament. According to the decision for the 2024–2029 parliamentary term (22 September 2023), the total number of MEPs to be elected in the upcoming European elections is 720 and the number of MEPs to be elected in Finland is 15. In the previous European elections, MEPs were elected in Finland as follows: 16 MEPs in 1996 and 1999, 14 MEPs in 2004 and 2019, and 13 MEPs in 2009 and 2014.
The Members of the European Parliament sit in political groups. These are organised by political affiliation and not by nationality. A political group needs a minimum of 23 MEPs who represent at least seven Member States.