Europe Ecologie Les Verts: After the EU Elections, Do or Die

Following a 13.5% result in the 2019 European elections, Europe Ecologie Les Verts (EELV) faces the challenge of converting temporary electoral momentum into long-term power. The author argues that while the party 'owns' environmental issues in the French electoral arena, it must manage a volatile and ideologically diverse electorate—ranging from the far left to the center—by prioritizing an ecology-centered discourse and opening the party to younger generations and external experts to avoid historical patterns of electoral decline.

• Europe Ecologie Les Verts (EELV) achieved a significant result in the May 2019 European Parliament elections, winning 13.5 per cent of the votes, which nearly matched its 2009 record of 16.3 per cent.
• The 2019 success was driven by structural shifts in society, including heightened environmental awareness and the influence of youth-led climate protests, such as the Greta Thunberg phenomenon.
• EELV's 2019 electorate was diverse, drawing equal proportions of voters from those who supported Emmanuel Macron and Jean-Luc Mélenchon in 2017.
• Historically, French Green parties have performed better in European elections than in national presidential or legislative elections because they are viewed as a credible pro-European option during 'second-order elections'.
• EELV effectively 'owns' environmental issues in the French electoral arena, meaning voters associate the environment with the party more than any other political force, which has limited the success of other parties like La France Insoumise or the Socialist Party in claiming the 'green card'.
• To avoid past volatility and secure power in 2020 and 2022, EELV must adopt a strategy centered on an ecology-focused political discourse that frames other issues like inequality through an ecological prism.

APA

Grossman, E. (2019). Europe Ecologie Les Verts: After the EU Elections, Do or Die. Green European Journal. https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/europe-ecologie-les-verts-after-the-eu-elections-do-or-die/

Chicago

Grossman, Emiliano. Europe Ecologie Les Verts: After the EU Elections, Do or Die. Green European Journal, 2019. https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/europe-ecologie-les-verts-after-the-eu-elections-do-or-die/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Grossman |first1=Emiliano |title=Europe Ecologie Les Verts: After the EU Elections, Do or Die |publisher=Green European Journal |date=19 December 2019 |url=https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/europe-ecologie-les-verts-after-the-eu-elections-do-or-die/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{grossman2019europe, author = {Grossman, Emiliano}, title = {{Europe Ecologie Les Verts: After the EU Elections, Do or Die}}, institution = {Green European Journal}, year = {2019}, month = dec, url = {https://www.greeneuropeanjournal.eu/europe-ecologie-les-verts-after-the-eu-elections-do-or-die/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }