The 2014 European Parliament elections will see populist parties make gains, but they will remain a battle for control between mainstream parties

European Parliament elections are due to take place in May 2014. Yves Bertoncini and Valentin Kreilinger write that while populist parties are likely to increase their numbers in the parliament, the major centre-left and centre-right parties will once again come out ahead, with a number of possible coalitions emerging from what is currently an open field. They argue that the election will come down to eight ‘swing states’ which have the largest populations and the greatest number of seats in the parliament.