Green wave could change the balance of power in European Parliament

The Greens are projected to win 71 seats

European Green party leading candidates Ska Keller from Germany and Bas Eickhout from the Netherlands were positive about the result. AFP

Green parties are heading for their largest ever number of MEPs in the European parliament.

Final results are still rolling in, but a combination of projected and confirmed results is showing the Greens could hold up to 71 of the 751 seats up for grabs, a 19-seat gain.

Governing parties rarely fare well in European elections, as voters take the chance to show their dissatisfaction with their leaders or champion a particular issue they care about. This has always been an advantage for smaller parties, including the Greens, who have seen their share of seats rise from 26 seats in 1989 to 50 in 2014.

Now the Greens could hold the balance of power in the chamber as the main parties lose out across the bloc to right wing populist parties.

Ska Keller, President of the Greens/EFA group, has said her party will consider carefully where it places its support, in particular aligning the Greens’ core principles of climate action, civil liberties and social justice.

“For us it’s clear: this is all about content,” she told a press conference in Brussels on Monday.

Support for the Greens was most strong in Germany, where they came second in the national vote, winning a projected 21 seats. They also doubled their share of seats in France with a projected 12 seats.

The party also came second in Finland, with 16 per cent of the vote, Ireland is projected to gain two Green MEPs for the first time in 20 years and Portugal will be sending its first Green representative to the parliament

The mood has been generally changing towards Green policies in the EU. The  2016 Paris climate accords pushed environmental issues near the top of the world political agenda in a bid to lower global warming and a succession of EU leaders have placed the issue at the forefront of their policy offering - most recently sparking a battle between French President Emmanuel Macron and the Gilets Jaunes movement over fuel tax.

Outside of national governments, protests organised by climate group Extinction Rebellion have inspired and infuriated residents of cities including London, Barcelona, Berlin and Copenhagen and teenage climate activist Greta Thunberg has been given television time to address the people.

Such activism, particularly Friday’s school walkout protest, has sparked interest in environmental issues, likely contributing to a rise in votes for the party.

The Greens were the first set of national parties to join together to create an EU party in 2004, setting a precedent of alliances for like-minded parties across Europe to band together. Today 30 national Green parties operate with at the EU level in alliance with progressive regional parties such as the Scottish National Party.

"Tonight's Green Wave gives us the mandate and duty to drive change in Europe,” said Bas Eickhout, Vice President of the Greens/EFA group.

“Any new Commission should take this into account, as our program of climate protection, social justice and defence of rule of law and democracy gave the Greens this important win.

"It's time the European Union puts all its efforts into a sustainable future and starts caring for its citizens, this must be at the heart of the program of the next Commission President.”