The European Parliament launched the #ThisTimeImVoting campaign to encourage citizen participation and to increase voter turnout in the upcoming European elections, with the European Movement International as an official partner from the offset.

To sign up to the campaign and make your pledge to vote, visit ttimv.eu/eurmove – using EMI’s unique URL to promote the campaign.

As you know, the European Union is a manifestation of the wills of more than 500 million citizens across the continent and reaches far beyond the corridors of Brussels. However, it is a challenging time for European cohesion and as Europeans, we face many challenges, ranging from health to climate change and from youth unemployment to data protection. Moreover, the world is becoming ever more globalised and competitive. In the midst of all this, the Brexit referendum and its chaotic aftermath have showcased that the EU is not an irrevocable project. And while most of us take democracy for granted, it also seems under increasing threat, both in principle and practice.

This is why we are supporting the European Parliament in building a community of supporters to help encourage a higher voter turnout at the #EUelections2019 by making the #ThisTimeImVoting campaign a central part of the DEMOCRACY ALIVE brand – both as the European Democracy Festival, as well as the locally hosted Europe Day events.

While the Secretariat in Brussels will be providing a wide variety of election material shortly, for you to use at will, you can also find a variety of election-related material on the European Parliament download centre that you can use for your campaign. This will be updated regularly with new elements.

Finally, ‘What Europe Does for Me’ website was launched, providing in a one-page, open-source format, over 400 notes on citizens and social groups and a further 1400 notes on EU regions and cities, to help provide information on how the EU’s work impacts our lives at a personal and local level.