Green parties’ gains could boost climate action in Europe
Green League chairman Pekka Haavisto attends the Green League Europarliament election party in Helsinki, Sunday, May 26, 2019. (Roni Rekomaa/Lehtikuva via AP)
Climate activists hold up placards outside the European Parliament in Brussels, Sunday, May 26, 2019. From Germany and France to Cyprus and Estonia, voters from 21 nations went to the polls Sunday in the final day of a crucial European Parliament election that could see major gains by the far-right, nationalist and populist movements that are on the rise across much of the continent. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
A young boy with a balloon sits by a sign erected by climate activists outside the European Parliament in Brussels, Sunday, May 26, 2019. From Germany and France to Cyprus and Estonia, voters from 21 nations went to the polls Sunday in the final day of a crucial European Parliament election that could see major gains by the far-right, nationalist and populist movements that are on the rise across much of the continent. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Robert Habeck, chairman of the Green Party, gestures during a news conference after the elections for the European Parliament in Berlin, Germany, Monday, May 27, 2019. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg speaks prior to the People’s Climate March, in front of Christiansborg Palace, in Copenhagen, Saturday, May 25, 2019. (Claus Bech/ Scanpix 2019 via AP)
A young boy with a balloon walks by a sign erected by climate activists outside the European Parliament in Brussels, Sunday, May 26, 2019. From Germany and France to Cyprus and Estonia, voters from 21 nations went to the polls Sunday in the final day of a crucial European Parliament election that could see major gains by the far-right, nationalist and populist movements that are on the rise across much of the continent. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Students hold posters as they attend a protest rally of the ‘Friday For Future’ movement in Berlin, Germany, Friday, May 24, 2019. The German language poster reads: ‘The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The next best time is now’. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
Green party chairwoman Annalena Baerbock and EU parliament member Sven Giegold celebrate after the first results in Berlin, Germany, Sunday, May 26, 2019. (Kay Nietfeld/dpa via AP)
Swedish Green Party (Miljoepartiet) candidate Alice Bah Kuhnke, center, and Per Bolund, right, Minister for Financial Markets and Housing, applaud at the party’s election night watch party as first preliminary results in the European Parliament elections are presented, at Clarion Hotell in Stockholm, Sweden, Sunday, May 26, 2019. (Janerik Henriksson/TT News Agency via AP)
Co-President of the Greens/EFA Group, Ska Keller, speaks in the hemicycle of the European Parliament in Brussels, Sunday, May 26, 2019. From Germany and France to Cyprus and Estonia, voters from 21 nations went to the polls Sunday in the final day of a crucial European Parliament election that could see major gains by the far-right, nationalist and populist movements that are on the rise across much of the continent. (AP Photo/Olivier Matthys)
Co-Presidents of the Greens/EFA Group, Philippe Lamberts, left, and Ska Keller, right, speak in the hemicycle of the European Parliament in Brussels, Sunday, May 26, 2019. From Germany and France to Cyprus and Estonia, voters from 21 nations went to the polls Sunday in the final day of a crucial European Parliament election that could see major gains by the far-right, nationalist and populist movements that are on the rise across much of the continent. (AP Photo/Olivier Matthys)
Green Party Candidate Cairan Cuffe reacts to the announcement of the first count at the count centre in the RDS, Dublin, Ireland as counting of votes continues in the European Elections, Sunday May 26, 2019. (Brian Lawless/PA via AP)
Green League chairman Pekka Haavisto attends the Green League Europarliament election party in Helsinki, Sunday, May 26, 2019. (Roni Rekomaa/Lehtikuva via AP)
Green League chairman Pekka Haavisto attends the Green League Europarliament election party in Helsinki, Sunday, May 26, 2019. (Roni Rekomaa/Lehtikuva via AP)
Climate activists hold up placards outside the European Parliament in Brussels, Sunday, May 26, 2019. From Germany and France to Cyprus and Estonia, voters from 21 nations went to the polls Sunday in the final day of a crucial European Parliament election that could see major gains by the far-right, nationalist and populist movements that are on the rise across much of the continent. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Climate activists hold up placards outside the European Parliament in Brussels, Sunday, May 26, 2019. From Germany and France to Cyprus and Estonia, voters from 21 nations went to the polls Sunday in the final day of a crucial European Parliament election that could see major gains by the far-right, nationalist and populist movements that are on the rise across much of the continent. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
A young boy with a balloon sits by a sign erected by climate activists outside the European Parliament in Brussels, Sunday, May 26, 2019. From Germany and France to Cyprus and Estonia, voters from 21 nations went to the polls Sunday in the final day of a crucial European Parliament election that could see major gains by the far-right, nationalist and populist movements that are on the rise across much of the continent. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
A young boy with a balloon sits by a sign erected by climate activists outside the European Parliament in Brussels, Sunday, May 26, 2019. From Germany and France to Cyprus and Estonia, voters from 21 nations went to the polls Sunday in the final day of a crucial European Parliament election that could see major gains by the far-right, nationalist and populist movements that are on the rise across much of the continent. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Robert Habeck, chairman of the Green Party, gestures during a news conference after the elections for the European Parliament in Berlin, Germany, Monday, May 27, 2019. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Robert Habeck, chairman of the Green Party, gestures during a news conference after the elections for the European Parliament in Berlin, Germany, Monday, May 27, 2019. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader)
Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg speaks prior to the People’s Climate March, in front of Christiansborg Palace, in Copenhagen, Saturday, May 25, 2019. (Claus Bech/ Scanpix 2019 via AP)
Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg speaks prior to the People’s Climate March, in front of Christiansborg Palace, in Copenhagen, Saturday, May 25, 2019. (Claus Bech/ Scanpix 2019 via AP)
A young boy with a balloon walks by a sign erected by climate activists outside the European Parliament in Brussels, Sunday, May 26, 2019. From Germany and France to Cyprus and Estonia, voters from 21 nations went to the polls Sunday in the final day of a crucial European Parliament election that could see major gains by the far-right, nationalist and populist movements that are on the rise across much of the continent. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
A young boy with a balloon walks by a sign erected by climate activists outside the European Parliament in Brussels, Sunday, May 26, 2019. From Germany and France to Cyprus and Estonia, voters from 21 nations went to the polls Sunday in the final day of a crucial European Parliament election that could see major gains by the far-right, nationalist and populist movements that are on the rise across much of the continent. (AP Photo/Francisco Seco)
Students hold posters as they attend a protest rally of the ‘Friday For Future’ movement in Berlin, Germany, Friday, May 24, 2019. The German language poster reads: ‘The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The next best time is now’. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
Students hold posters as they attend a protest rally of the ‘Friday For Future’ movement in Berlin, Germany, Friday, May 24, 2019. The German language poster reads: ‘The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The next best time is now’. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber)
Green party chairwoman Annalena Baerbock and EU parliament member Sven Giegold celebrate after the first results in Berlin, Germany, Sunday, May 26, 2019. (Kay Nietfeld/dpa via AP)
Green party chairwoman Annalena Baerbock and EU parliament member Sven Giegold celebrate after the first results in Berlin, Germany, Sunday, May 26, 2019. (Kay Nietfeld/dpa via AP)
Swedish Green Party (Miljoepartiet) candidate Alice Bah Kuhnke, center, and Per Bolund, right, Minister for Financial Markets and Housing, applaud at the party’s election night watch party as first preliminary results in the European Parliament elections are presented, at Clarion Hotell in Stockholm, Sweden, Sunday, May 26, 2019. (Janerik Henriksson/TT News Agency via AP)
Swedish Green Party (Miljoepartiet) candidate Alice Bah Kuhnke, center, and Per Bolund, right, Minister for Financial Markets and Housing, applaud at the party’s election night watch party as first preliminary results in the European Parliament elections are presented, at Clarion Hotell in Stockholm, Sweden, Sunday, May 26, 2019. (Janerik Henriksson/TT News Agency via AP)
Co-President of the Greens/EFA Group, Ska Keller, speaks in the hemicycle of the European Parliament in Brussels, Sunday, May 26, 2019. From Germany and France to Cyprus and Estonia, voters from 21 nations went to the polls Sunday in the final day of a crucial European Parliament election that could see major gains by the far-right, nationalist and populist movements that are on the rise across much of the continent. (AP Photo/Olivier Matthys)
Co-President of the Greens/EFA Group, Ska Keller, speaks in the hemicycle of the European Parliament in Brussels, Sunday, May 26, 2019. From Germany and France to Cyprus and Estonia, voters from 21 nations went to the polls Sunday in the final day of a crucial European Parliament election that could see major gains by the far-right, nationalist and populist movements that are on the rise across much of the continent. (AP Photo/Olivier Matthys)
Co-Presidents of the Greens/EFA Group, Philippe Lamberts, left, and Ska Keller, right, speak in the hemicycle of the European Parliament in Brussels, Sunday, May 26, 2019. From Germany and France to Cyprus and Estonia, voters from 21 nations went to the polls Sunday in the final day of a crucial European Parliament election that could see major gains by the far-right, nationalist and populist movements that are on the rise across much of the continent. (AP Photo/Olivier Matthys)
Co-Presidents of the Greens/EFA Group, Philippe Lamberts, left, and Ska Keller, right, speak in the hemicycle of the European Parliament in Brussels, Sunday, May 26, 2019. From Germany and France to Cyprus and Estonia, voters from 21 nations went to the polls Sunday in the final day of a crucial European Parliament election that could see major gains by the far-right, nationalist and populist movements that are on the rise across much of the continent. (AP Photo/Olivier Matthys)
Green Party Candidate Cairan Cuffe reacts to the announcement of the first count at the count centre in the RDS, Dublin, Ireland as counting of votes continues in the European Elections, Sunday May 26, 2019. (Brian Lawless/PA via AP)
Green Party Candidate Cairan Cuffe reacts to the announcement of the first count at the count centre in the RDS, Dublin, Ireland as counting of votes continues in the European Elections, Sunday May 26, 2019. (Brian Lawless/PA via AP)
BERLIN (AP) — Green parties’ surprisingly strong showing in elections for the 751-seat European Parliament raised hopes — particularly among young voters — that global warming and other environmental issues will get more serious consideration on the continent.
Provisional results Monday showed the left-leaning Greens coming in fourth in the balloting with 69 seats, an increase of 17 from the last election, five years ago. Perhaps more significantly, the results showed how environmental concerns can transcend the political issues that dominate most European Union elections.
“The European election was a climate election,” declared Anna Kretzschmar, a German in her 20s who was out in a Berlin park with her young child.
Kretzschmar welcomed the lift the Greens received in Sunday’s vote, saying it would give them a stronger voice to raise the alarm about global warming.
“I think we are more affected by climate change than we realize,” she added.
Among other things, the Green movement has strongly backed scientists’ calls for the 28-nation bloc to end all greenhouse gas emissions by mid-century, a goal that would require an epic shift in Europe’s economy away from fossil fuels.
In Germany, the Greens did particularly well in large cities and among young voters, according to the Infratest dimap research institute. The gains followed months of street protests from students demanding action to stop global warming.
The German Greens’ gains came at the expense of all other mainstream parties, including the center-left Social Democrats, who slumped to third place behind the Greens, and Chancellor Angela Merkel’s center-right Christian Democrats.
Armin Laschet, the governor of North Rhine-Westphalia state and a member of Merkel’s party, called the outcome “a wake-up call for politics.”
In France, the environmental EELV party received almost 13.5% of the vote, coming in third. Green parties also polled strongly in Austria, Belgium, Ireland, Denmark and the Netherlands. In Britain, the Greens — a largely insignificant force nationally — took 7 seats in the European Parliament vote.
“The center of gravity of European politics is shifting,” said Yannick Jadot, the EELV’s lead candidate.
Manuel Rivera, a Green party member in the German capital, said the European Parliament is the right place to tackle climate change: “I think people realize that there are issues you can’t solve at the national level.”
The suggestion that countries should set aside domestic interests in favor of European cooperation angered some nationalist parties on the continent.
Alexander Gauland, co-leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany, declared the Greens “our main enemy.”
“The Greens will destroy this country, and our job must and will be to fight the Greens,” said Gauland, whose party has claimed that climate change isn’t a man-made phenomenon and that efforts to tackle it will harm Germany’s economy.
In addition to pushing for action on climate change, the Greens have generally positioned themselves as a counterweight to anti-immigration parties such as Alternative for Germany, which have decried the influx of migrants from the Middle East.
The Green bloc in the European Parliament could now be in a position to play a key role in choosing the next head of the EU’s executive Commission.
Sven Giegold, a leading candidate for the German Green party, which roughly doubled its share of the vote to 20% compared with 2014, wouldn’t rule out backing one of the mainstream candidates provided environmental issues are reflected in his or her program.
Giegold’s party has proposed diverting some of the bloc’s huge agricultural subsidies toward eco-friendly farming and checking the climate impact of every law passed at the EU level.
“Whoever wants legitimacy from us and the legitimacy of the many who went onto the streets will need to deliver now,” he said.
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Associated Press writers Sylvie Corbet in Paris and Kirsten Grieshaber in Berlin contributed to this report.
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For more news from The Associated Press on the European Parliament elections go to https://www.apnews.com/EuropeanParliament