Democracy :Summary

Democracy, the rule of law and fundamental rights are the foundations on which the European Union is based. Democracy allows citizens to make electoral choices in a public space where a plurality of views can be expressed freely and to shape laws and public policies at European, national, regional and local levels. In December 2020, the European Commission presented its European Democracy Action Plan (hereafter ‘EDAP’) to empower citizens and build more resilient democracies across the EU by: (1) promoting free and fair elections, (2) strengthening media freedom and pluralism, and (3) countering disinformation. President von der Leyen announced in her 2022 State of the Union Address a ‘Defense of Democracy’ package, which would aim to review the implementation of, and deepen the actions under EDAP, as well as to ‘bring covert foreign influence and shady funding to light’. In this context, a flash Eurobarometer survey was commissioned by the Commission’s Secretariat-General to assess EU citizens’ views on the state of democracy in their country and in the EU as well as EU citizens’ perceptions of the possible threats democratic institutions in the EU may be facing.