What Role Do Political Parties Play In The European Parliament?

Political parties play a crucial role in the European Parliament, just like in national assemblies, as politicians of individual member states do not sit together in national groups, but are divided based on political and ideological persuasion.

At the same time, European parliamentary groups are required to represent the EU's national and ethnic diversity. As such, a party can only form a caucus in parliament if it has members from at least one fifth of all EU states. Additionally, it must control at least  16 mandates within the parliament to qualify for official party status.

Parliamentary parties can also delegate representatives to various standing committees and other boards and the parties usually vote on legislation en bloc, based on each group's political views. Additionally, parties can also call for a no-confidence motion against the European Commission.

The EP parties actually represent over 140 national and regional political parties of all persuasions. This can make remaining unified, forming coherent party positions and keeping caucus discipline a real challenge. In many cases, parties will find common ground with other groups in parliament and will form temporary coalitions for specific votes.