Volt Europa (frequently abbreviated as Volt) is a

pro-European Pro-Europeanism, sometimes called European Unionism, is a political position that favours European integration and membership of the European Union (EU).Krisztina Arató, Petr Kaniok (editors). ''Euroscepticism and European Integration''. Politi ...

and European federalist political movement that also serves as the

pan-European Pan-European can refer to: * Pan-European identity * Pan-European corridors ** Pan-European Corridor X ** Pan-European Corridor Xa * Pan European Game Information * Pan-European Institute * Pan-European nationalism * Pan-European Oil Pipeline ...

structure for subsidiary parties in several EU member states. Volt candidates stood on a common, pan-European manifesto in eight member states at the European Parliament elections in May 2019. The organisation follows a "pan-European approach" in many policy fields such as climate change, migration, economic inequality, international conflict, terrorism and the impact of the technological revolution on the labour market. The party endorses "evidence-based policy" and the sharing of

best practice A best practice is a method or technique that has been generally accepted as superior to other known alternatives because it often produces results that are superior to those achieved by other means or because it has become a standard way of doing ...

between EU member states. It was founded on 29 March 2017. In March 2018, the first national subsidiary party was founded in

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

, Germany. Volt has since established local teams in every EU member state, as well as in

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

, and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, and is registered as a legal party in several of these countries.

History

Foundation

Volt Europa was founded on 29 March 2017 by

Andrea Venzon Andrea is a given name which is common worldwide for both males and females, cognate to Andreas, Andrej and Andrew. Origin of the name The name derives from the Greek word ἀνήρ (''anēr''), genitive ἀνδρός (''andrós''), that r ...

Colombe Cahen-Salvador Colombe may refer to: People * Alain Colombe (born 1949), French slalom canoeist * Anne Félicité Colombe (fl. 1793), French printer and political activist * Georges-Henri Colombe (born 1998), French rugby union player * Jean Colombe (1430–1 ...

and

Damian Boeselager Damian Hieronymus Johannes Freiherr von Boeselager (born 8 March 1988) is a German business consultant, journalist and Volt Europa politician who has sat in the European Parliament since being elected in 2019. Early life and education Damian Boes ...

, on the same day that the United Kingdom formally announced its intention to leave the European Union under Article 50 TEU. According to their own statement, Volt's foundation was a reaction to growing populism in the world as well as to

Brexit Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or ...

. Venzon became founding President, Boeselager Vice President, and Cahen-Salvador policy leader. Karte Volt Europa

First European Parliament election (2019)

From 27 to 28 October 2018 Volt Europa hosted its General Assembly meeting in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the Capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population ...

, agreeing its Amsterdam Declaration, which also served as its manifesto programme for the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...

elections. The party previously gathered in Berlin, Bucharest, and Paris. From 22 to 24 March 2019 Volt Europa hosted its first European Congress in Rome, presenting its candidates for the 2019 European Parliament election. The keynote speakers list included

Paolo Gentiloni Paolo Gentiloni Silveri (; born 22 November 1954) is an Italian politician who has served as European Commissioner for Economy in the von der Leyen Commission since 1 December 2019. He previously served as prime minister of Italy from December ...

(former

Prime Minister of Italy The Prime Minister of Italy, officially the President of the Council of Ministers ( it, link=no, Presidente del Consiglio dei Ministri), is the head of government of the Italian Republic. The office of president of the Council of Ministers is ...

and President of the Italian Democratic Party),

Emma Bonino Emma Bonino (born 9 March 1948) is an Italian politician. A senator for Rome, she served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2013 to 2014. Previously, she was a Member of the European Parliament and a member of the Chamber of Deputies. She serve ...

(Italian

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

and former

European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety The Commissioner for Health and Food Safety is the member of the European Commission. The current post of Commissioner is held by Stella Kyriakidou ( el, Στέλλα Κυριακίδου) from Cyprus, a psychologist and politician of the conse ...

Enrico Giovannini Enrico Giovannini (born 6 June 1957) is an Italian economist, statistician and academic, member of the Club of Rome. Since February 2021, he has been serving as Minister of Infrastructure and Sustainable Mobility in the Draghi Government. Fr ...

(former

Italian Government The government of Italy is in the form of a democratic republic, and was established by a constitution in 1948. It consists of legislative, executive, and judicial subdivisions, as well as a Head of State, or President. The Italian Constituti ...

minister), Marcella Panucci (Director General of the

General Confederation of Italian Industry The General Confederation of Italian Industry ( it, Confederazione generale dell'industria italiana), commonly known as Confindustria, is the Italian employers' federation and national chamber of commerce, founded in 1910. It groups together more ...

Sandro Gozi Sandro Gozi () (born 25 March 1968 in Sogliano al Rubicone) is an Italian politician formerly of the Democratic Party who has been a Member of the European Parliament since 2020. He was a member of the Italian Chamber of Deputies from 2006 to 201 ...

(President of the

Union of European Federalists The Union of European Federalists (UEF) is a European non-governmental organisation, campaigning for a Federal Europe. It consists of 20 constituent organisations and it has been active at the European, national and local levels since 1946. H ...

) and

Antonio Navarra Antonio is a masculine given name of Etruscan language, Etruscan origin deriving from the root name Antonius. It is a common name among Romance language-speaking populations as well as the Balkans and Lusophone Africa. It has been among the top 40 ...

(President of the Mediterranean Center for Climate Change). During the European Parliament elections in May 2019 the party won one seat by winning 0.7 percent of votes in Germany, with

its first

Member of the European Parliament A Member of the European Parliament (MEP) is a person who has been elected to serve as a popular representative in the European Parliament. When the European Parliament (then known as the Common Assembly of the ECSC) first met in 1952, its ...

. On 9 June 2019, following a pan-European vote of party members, Volt elected to join the Greens–European Free Alliance group in the European Parliament. In the future, Volt hopes to be able to form its own political group in the European Parliament, which would require a minimum of 25 MEPs from at least seven different member states.

Election of new board and first pan-European digital assembly (2019–2020)

From 12 to 13 October 2019, Volt Europa hosted its general assembly in

Sofia Sofia ( ; bg, София, Sofiya, ) is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain in the western parts of the country. The city is built west of the Iskar river, and ha ...

to elect the new board of Volt Europa. The movement elected former Volt Deutschland president Valerie Sternberg and the former MEP lead candidate of Volt Nederland, Reinier van Lanschot, as co-presidents of Volt Europa. The newly elected treasurer is the former MEP candidate of Volt Luxembourg Julia Pitterman. The elected non-executive board members consist of Konrad Ritter, Eileen O'Sullivan, Bruno Sánchez-Andrade Nuño ( es), Sofia Gentiloni Silveri, Joel Boehme and Cornelia-Florina German. Due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, Volt did not host its Spring 2020 general assembly in

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

as planned, but instead became the first pan-European political movement to publicly host a digital general assembly, including a vote on its programme until 2024.

First involvement in national politics (2021)

Volt contested the 2021 Dutch general election, with

Laurens Dassen Laurens Antonius Josephus Maria Dassen (born 19 October 1985) is a Dutch politician and former banker. Dassen grew up in Knegsel, studied business administration at Radboud University Nijmegen and worked for ABN AMRO for six years. He has been ...

leading the party list.

Volt Netherlands Volt Netherlands (, usually simply called Volt) is a social-liberal political party in the Netherlands. It is the Dutch branch of Volt Europa, a political movement that operates on a European level. History Oprichting Volt - speech Reinier van ...

ultimately won 2.4% of votes, their best national performance in any election to date, and three seats, marking their first entrance into a national legislature. Volt Bulgaria participated in all three Bulgarian parliamentary elections in 2021, the first two as part of the anti-government coalition ISMV then under PP for the third election. The first coalition won seats in both elections but none of them were allocated to members of Volt. However, the second coalition won more seats, with Volt taking two seats in the Bulgarian National Assembly. Volt UK's Scottish branch, Volt Scotland, formed an

electoral pact An electoral alliance (also known as a bipartisan electoral agreement, electoral pact, electoral agreement, electoral coalition or electoral bloc) is an association of political parties or individuals that exists solely to stand in elections. Ea ...

with Renew Scotland, which saw candidates from Volt Scotland joining the Renew party list for the

2021 Scottish Parliament election The 2021 Scottish Parliament election took place on 6 May 2021, under the provisions of the Scotland Act 1998. All 129 Members of the Scottish Parliament were elected in the sixth election since the parliament was re-established in 1999. The ele ...

. For the Scottish Parliament elections, Volt joined Renew in calling for a multiple-choice

referendum A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of a ...

on the issue of Scottish independence. Renew candidates received 493 votes or 0.02% of the vote for their regional lists and failed to return any MSPs. From 16 to 17 October 2021, Volt Europa hosted its General Assembly in Lisbon, Portugal. It was the first physical General Assembly since 2019. During the 2021 General Assembly, Reinier van Lanschot who has been co-president since the General Assembly in Sofia 2019 was reelected. Francesca Romana D'Antuono from Italy was elected as co-president. Johannes Heinrich from Switzerland was elected as treasurer. The six non-executive board members elected were: Ines Consonni, Anouk Ooms, Lucia Nass, Thor Larholm, Charles Evain and Lucas Amorelli Ribeiro Kornexl.

Name

Volt Europa was incorporated as a non-profit association in Luxembourg under the name Volt Europa, abandoning a previous name of Vox Europe to avoid any confusion with a similarly named far-right Spanish party. "Volt" was chosen as a name due to its similarity to the initial name and the added meaning of figuratively bringing

voltage Voltage, also known as electric pressure, electric tension, or (electric) potential difference, is the difference in electric potential between two points. In a static electric field, it corresponds to the work needed per unit of charge to m ...

into politics. Added to that, both the term "Volt" and the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

version of name of the European continent have in common that they are understood in all European languages, hence as a transcontinental movement Volt Europa loses the need to adopt translations of its own name, except for languages where non-Latin alphabets are used (like

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

and

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

Ideology and policies

In 2018, Volt identified "the 5+1 fundamental challenges": * A smart state – Digitalisation of

public services A public service is any service intended to address specific needs pertaining to the aggregate members of a community. Public services are available to people within a government jurisdiction as provided directly through public sector agencies ...

* Economic renaissance – a blend of

circular Circular may refer to: * The shape of a circle * ''Circular'' (album), a 2006 album by Spanish singer Vega * Circular letter (disambiguation) ** Flyer (pamphlet), a form of advertisement * Circular reasoning, a type of logical fallacy * Circular ...

green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 Nanometre, nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by ...

and

blue Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between violet and cyan on the spectrum of visible light. The eye perceives blue when obs ...

economic models * Social equality –

Human rights Human rights are Morality, moral principles or Social norm, normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for ce ...

equality of opportunity Equal opportunity is a state of fairness in which individuals are treated similarly, unhampered by artificial barriers, prejudices, or preferences, except when particular distinctions can be explicitly justified. The intent is that the important ...

gender equality Gender equality, also known as sexual equality or equality of the sexes, is the state of equal ease of access to resources and opportunities regardless of gender, including economic participation and decision-making; and the state of valuing d ...

, and tolerance of cultural differences * Global balance – Sustainable and responsible policies in farming and trade, measures to

address climate change Climate change mitigation is action to limit climate change by reducing emissions of greenhouse gases or removing those gases from the atmosphere. The recent rise in global average temperature is mostly caused by emissions from fossil fuels b ...

and refugee crises, and support for labour migration and development cooperation * Citizen empowerment – Greater

subsidiarity Subsidiarity is a principle of social organization that holds that social and political issues should be dealt with at the most immediate or local level that is consistent with their resolution. The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' defines subsidi ...

social responsibility Social responsibility is an ethical framework in which an individual is obligated to work and cooperate with other individuals and organizations for the benefit of the community that will inherit the world that individual leaves behind. Social ...

, and

participatory democracy Participatory democracy, participant democracy or participative democracy is a form of government in which citizens participate individually and directly in political decisions and policies that affect their lives, rather than through elected repr ...

* +1 European reform –

Federation A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government (federalism). In a federation, the self-governin ...

of EU states, with greater responsibilities for its

regions In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

and

cities A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

On economic issues, Volt Europa supports digitisation, investment in the

and

blue economy Blue economy is a term in economics relating to the exploitation, preservation and regeneration of the marine environment. Its scope of interpretation varies among organizations. However, the term is generally used in the scope of internation ...

, measures to address poverty and inequality (including a European minimum wage), a more integrated European tax system, and the use of public-private partnerships; it also supports increased spending on welfare, in particular related to education and

healthcare Health care or healthcare is the improvement of health via the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, amelioration or cure of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in people. Health care is delivered by health profe ...

. On social policy, Volt opposes sexism and racism and supports LGBT+ rights. It also supports deep reforms to EU institutions, including common management of migration, a

European army The Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) is the European Union's (EU) course of action in the fields of defence and crisis management, and a main component of the EU's Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP). The CSDP involves the deplo ...

, and

eurobonds Eurobond may refer to: * Eurobond (external bond) A eurobond is an international bond that is denominated in a currency not native to the country where it is issued. They are also called external bonds. They are usually categorised according t ...

. Volt argues that the relationship between the EU and NATO should be reviewed in the long term. Volt supports the idea of a federal Europe with a strong European Parliament, in order to create a united European voice on the global stage. Unlike other pro-European movements, such as Pulse of Europe or the European Federalists, Volt aims to participate in European, local and national elections through its subsidiary organisations in EU member states. Its first major objective was the European Parliament elections in May 2019.

Co-Presidents of Volt Europa

National sections

Albania

Volt Albania is not registered as a party in

, but engages as a movement on the ground and participates at the European level of Volt.

Austria

Volt Österreich is Volt's registered political party in

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

. The party planned to take part in the European elections in 2019, but did not succeed in collecting the required 2,600 signatures in time to qualify for the ballot. Since then, the party contested some local elections, but did not receive a mandate.

Belgium

Volt Belgium/Belgique/België/Belgien is Volt's registered political party in

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

. Volt Belgium was the first section to participate in elections, when they took part in the 2018 Belgian local elections in

Ixelles ( French, ) or (Dutch, ), is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located to the south-east of Brussels' city centre, it is geographically bisected by the City of Brussels. It is also bordered by the muni ...

Etterbeek Etterbeek (French: ; Dutch: ) is one of the 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the eastern part of the region, it is bordered by the municipalities of Auderghem, the City of Brussels, Ixelles, Schaerbeek, Wolu ...

and also shared a list with the local Pirate Party (Paars) for

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

. During the 2019 European Parliament elections, Volt participated in the Dutch Speaking electoral college, receiving 0.48% of the vote, not enough for a seat.

Bulgaria

Волт България (Volt Bulgaria) is Volt's registered political party in

. In the national parliamentary elections in November 2021, Volt achieved a mandate in the

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...

for the first time as part of the electoral alliance

We Continue the Change We Continue the Change ( bg, Продължаваме промяната, Prodalzhavame promyanata; PP), sometimes translated as Change Continues, is a Centrism, centrist, anti-corruption List of political parties in Bulgaria, political party and ...

. In December 2021, Volt Bulgaria achieved a second mandate, when a Member of Parliament from their coalition became a minister and freed up an MP spot for Volt Bulgaria.

Cyprus

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

, Volt cooperates with the movement New Wave - The Other Cyprus. The Cypriot movement and Volt signed a memorandum of understanding for a merger in November 2021. As a result, New Wave was renamed "New Wave , , Volt Cyprus - The Other Cyprus". The plan is to merge to form the Volt Cyprus party after the 2023 presidential elections.

Czech Republic

Volt was founded 2019 and operated from 11 April 2021 to 28 June 2022 in the Czech Republic as the registered association Volt Česká republika, z.s, with Karolina Machová and Adam Hanka as the chairs of the association and Jan Klátil as the treasurer. Volt is now registered as a political party, Volt Česko. In the 2022 local elections in Prague, the party contested an election for the first time. Volt received 4 816 votes (0.14 %) and thus did not win a mandate.

Denmark

The Danish chapter of Volt, Volt Danmark, was founded on 21 July 2018. The party contested an election for the first time in November 2021 with the municipal election in

Frederiksberg Frederiksberg () is a part of the Capital Region of Denmark. It is formally an independent municipality, Frederiksberg Municipality, separate from Copenhagen Municipality, but both are a part of the City of Copenhagen. It occupies an area of ...

, Volt received 105 votes (0.2 %) and thus did not win a mandate. To be eligible for national elections, to be held in 2023 at the latest, the party needs 21,000 digital signatures. To run in the European Elections in 2024, the party needs 71,000 digital signatures.

France

Volt France was founded as the ninth national branch of Volt Europa, and has nine active branches, with "city teams" in Grenoble, Lille, Lyon, Nantes, Nice, Paris, Rennes, and two cross-border branches in Ain-Geneva and Strasbourg-Kehl. The party was unable to participate in the European Elections 2019 due to a lack of funding. In 2020, Volt France participated in

municipal elections In many parts of the world, local elections take place to select office-holders in local government, such as mayors and councillors. Elections to positions within a city or town are often known as "municipal elections". Their form and conduct vary ...

. The party ran in coalition with the Greens in Lille, where they received 24.5% in the first round, and lost in the second round with 39.4%; as a coalition with "100% citoyens" in Lyon, receiving 3.4% and 1.6% in two districts; and alone in Paris' 9th district, receiving 0.5% in the first round. In the 2022 general elections, the party contested in a number of constituencies, including overseas constituencies.

Germany

Volt Germany (

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

Volt Deutschland) became a registered political party in Germany in 2018, allowing it to compete in German elections. Volt Deutschland's basic programme is based upon a policies proposal, which is also fundamental for Volt Europa. The German branch's initial focus was the five "challenges" of "an intelligent state, social equality, economic renaissance, politically active citizenship" and "global balance". It also seeks to implement an overarching policy of transnational EU reform in accordance with the programmes of both Volt Deutschland and Volt Europa. Volt Deutschland's programme for the 2019 European elections 2019 was identical to that of all other European sections. It was adopted as the "Amsterdam Declaration" by all Volt sections in October 2018. In the 2019 European Election "Volt Deutschland" received 248,824 votes, 0.7% of the total votes in Germany. As a result, Volt Deutschland's leading candidate

won one of Germany's 96 seats in the European Parliament. Volt Deutschland has won individual seats on a number of city councils. In local elections occurring the same day as the European Elections in 2019, Volt received 1.2% of the votes for the election to the City Council in

Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main (river), Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-we ...

, winning 1 seat. In Bavaria's 2020 local elections, the party won one seat each in Bamberg and

Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...

. In Munich, Volt subsequently became part of the governing coalition with the

Social Democrats Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote so ...

. Later that year, the party won seats on the city councils of

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...

Bonn The federal city of Bonn ( lat, Bonna) is a city on the banks of the Rhine in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, with a population of over 300,000. About south-southeast of Cologne, Bonn is in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr r ...

Aachen Aachen ( ; ; Aachen dialect: ''Oche'' ; French and traditional English: Aix-la-Chapelle; or ''Aquisgranum''; nl, Aken ; Polish: Akwizgran) is, with around 249,000 inhabitants, the 13th-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia, and the 28th- ...

Siegen Siegen () is a city in Germany, in the south Westphalian part of North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly sho ...

Münster Münster (; nds, Mönster) is an independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a state di ...

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in th ...

, and

Paderborn Paderborn (; Westphalian: ''Patterbuorn'', also ''Paterboärn'') is a city in eastern North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, capital of the Paderborn district. The name of the city derives from the river Pader and ''Born'', an old German term for t ...

. Volt was particularly strong in Cologne and Bonn, where it received around 5% of the votes, resulting in four and three seats, respectively. In March 2021, the party also won seats in

Darmstadt Darmstadt () is a city in the States of Germany, state of Hesse in Germany, located in the southern part of the Frankfurt Rhine Main Area, Rhine-Main-Area (Frankfurt Metropolitan Region). Darmstadt has around 160,000 inhabitants, making it th ...

Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

Wiesbaden Wiesbaden () is a city in central western Germany and the capital of the state of Hesse. , it had 290,955 inhabitants, plus approximately 21,000 United States citizens (mostly associated with the United States Army). The Wiesbaden urban area ...

Fulda Fulda () (historically in English called Fuld) is a town in Hesse, Germany; it is located on the river Fulda and is the administrative seat of the Fulda district (''Kreis''). In 1990, the town hosted the 30th Hessentag state festival. History ...

and

Heusenstamm Heusenstamm () is a town of over 18,000 people in the Offenbach district in the ''Regierungsbezirk'' of Darmstadt in Hesse, Germany. Geography Location Heusenstamm is one of 13 towns and communities in the Offenbach district. The town li ...

in the 2021 Hessian local elections. The 6.5% vote share in Darmstadt, to win five of the 71 seats, was the party's best ever result in a German council.

Greece

Volt Greece (

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

Βολτ Ελλάδας) was founded in 2018. In July 2022, the group elected its first executive secretariat and an ethics committee, which were tasked with preparing its establishment as a party. On 4 October 2022, the party was officially registered, becoming the 18th registered party of Volt Europa.

Ireland

Volt Ireland (Volt Éire in

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

) formed in the run-up to the 2019 European elections, but did not initially register as a party, holding meetings in various cities. In October 2021, the group launched an attempt to register as a party. To do so, 300 signatures are required from Irish citizens and

EU citizens European Union citizenship is afforded to all citizens of member states of the European Union (EU). It was formally created with the adoption of the 1992 Maastricht Treaty, at the same time as the creation of the EU. EU citizenship is additio ...

living in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

Italy

Volt Italy (

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

Volt Italia) was founded on 18 July 2018. Gianluca Guerra and Eliana Canavesio are party leaders and Paolo Manetta is treasurer. The party was unable to take part in the 2019 European elections, failing to obtain the required 150,000 notarised supporter signatures. Since then, the party has taken part in a number of regional and local elections, winning mandates in Mantua and Isernia, among other cities, where Federica Vinci, then chair of Volt Italia, was elected deputy mayor.

Luxembourg

Volt Luxembourg was founded in 2019 and received around 2% of the vote in the 2019 European Parliamentary Elections.

Malta

Volt Malta was officially registered as a political party in Malta in May 2021 and is contesting the 2022 elections for the national parliament, with two candidates covering four districts. In early March, the party stated its support for the legalization of abortion. Kass Mallia was Malta's first transgender politician to run for election. Volt Malta presented a proposal for AirMalta to become a public limited company through an initial public offering, look for North American travel markets, and a Diaspora Pass to entice the Maltese diaspora to visit Malta. The party received 382 votes (0.13%), receiving no seats in parliament.

Netherlands

Volt Netherland is Volt's registered political party in the Netherlands and was founded on 23 June 2018 in

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the List of cities in the Netherlands by province, fourth-largest city and a List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the Provinces of the Netherlands, pro ...

. The party received 2.42% of the vote in the 2021 general election, taking three seats in the

Dutch House of Representatives The House of Representatives (, pronounced ; commonly referred to as the ', literally "Second Chamber of the States General") is the lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral parliament of the Netherlands, the States General of the Netherlands ...

Portugal

In October 2019, Volt Portugal submitted more than the 9,000 signatures needed to register as a political party. After multiple delays, the

Constitutional Court A constitutional court is a high court that deals primarily with constitutional law. Its main authority is to rule on whether laws that are challenged are in fact unconstitutional, i.e. whether they conflict with constitutionally established ...

approved Volt Portugal as the country's 25th party in June 2020. Volt Portugal initially planned to contest regional elections on the Azores in Autumn 2020, but was unable to do so due to a slow registration process, which did not allow enough time to recruit candidates. In the September 2021 local elections, the party contested in

(0.58%),

Porto Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city in Portugal, the capital of the Porto District, and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropol ...

(0.42%),

Tomar Tomar (), also known in English as Thomar (the ancient name of Tomar), is a city and a municipality in the Santarém district of Portugal. The town proper has a population of about 20,000. The municipality population in 2011 was 40,677, in an a ...

(1.36%),

Coimbra Coimbra (, also , , or ) is a city and a municipality in Portugal. The population of the municipality at the 2011 census was 143,397, in an area of . The fourth-largest urban area in Portugal after Lisbon, Porto Metropolitan Area, Porto, and Bra ...

(coalition 43.92%) and Oeiras (coalition 7.57%), winning a mandate in Coimbra. Independent MEP

Francisco Guerreiro Francisco Guerreiro (born 12 September 1984) is a Portuguese politician currently serving as an independent Member of the European Parliament for Portugal, having been elected whilst standing as a candidate for People Animals Nature. In October ...

supported the party in the local elections and announced he would join the party after his mandate expired. In the January 2022 general election, Volt Portugal contested a national election for the first time, running in 18 of 20 districts. The party received 0.1% of the vote and did not win any seats.

Romania

Volt România is Volt's registered political party in Romania. It was registered in February 2021, the 15th registered national party of Volt Europa. The group has been active in the country since 2017, participating in initiatives against attacks on the rule of law and mobilising the diaspora to participate in the elections.

Spain

Volt Spain (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

: Volt España) was officially registered as a party in

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

on 15 June 2018 as the third national section. The party won 32,291 votes in the 2019 European Parliament election. In May, the party contested the local elections in Madrid for the first time since the European elections, but failed to win a mandate. During the elections, a representative of the right-wing populist Vox warned against confusion with his own party, as the placement of the ballot papers next to each other was, according to him, intended to cause confusion. Volt's average age in Spain is below 35, and its chairpersons are Rachele Arciulo and Cristian Castrillón.

Sweden

Volt Sverige is Volt's registered political party in Sweden. Michael Holz and Alexander Löf are party leaders and Joel Boehme is treasurer. The party campaigned for the 2019 European Parliament elections, but as a write-in party without its own ballot papers, relying on voters to write the party's name on blank ballot papers. Volt Sverige received 146 votes in this way. In early November 2021, the Ljusnarsberg branch of Liberalerna (The Liberals) announced its intention to become an association and run for Volt in the local elections. The party's local elected representative joined Volt, becoming the first and only Volt representative in Sweden. The party participated in the 2022 Swedish general election and received 89 votes.

Switzerland

Volt Switzerland was founded on 9 October 2019. There are teams in

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

, Zurich,

Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS ...

Bern german: Berner(in)french: Bernois(e) it, bernese , neighboring_municipalities = Bremgarten bei Bern, Frauenkappelen, Ittigen, Kirchlindach, Köniz, Mühleberg, Muri bei Bern, Neuenegg, Ostermundigen, Wohlen bei Bern, Zollikofen , website ...

and

Lugano Lugano (, , ; lmo, label=Ticinese dialect, Ticinese, Lugan ) is a city and municipality in Switzerland, part of the Lugano District in the canton of Ticino. It is the largest city of both Ticino and the Italian-speaking southern Switzerland. Luga ...

. In February 2020, Volt participated in the Unity Committee for the Free Movement of Persons. It is intended to address concerns of foreigners and Swiss with a migration background to achieve greater participation in Swiss public life and was also directed against the citizens' initiative "For moderate immigration (limitation initiative)". In the municipal elections in Zurich in February 2022, Volt stood for the first time in an election in Switzerland and fielded candidates in 2 out of 9 constituencies. In constituency 7+8 the party achieved 0.24%, in constituency 10 0.34%, which means that it did not win a mandate. The party is part of the Swiss Europe Initiative, which calls for the

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

and the Federal Council to start negotiations with the EU on institutional issues and cooperation.

Ukraine

Volt Ukraine ( uk, Вольт Україна, Volʹt Ukrayina) was founded in July 2022. Its founder and chairman is Mykhaylo Pobigay, a war veteran and the head of the non-profit organisation Land of The Free. Volt Ukraine advocates for

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

to join the EU, as well as more military support and a European orientation for Ukraine. Members of Volt Ukraine also help support refugees and arrange accommodation in Europe.

United Kingdom

Volt UK Volt UK (officially: Volt United Kingdom) is a pro-European political party in the United Kingdom. It is the British branch of Volt Europa, a political movement that operates on a European level. History Volt UK was founded in London on 6 Januar ...

was registered with the British

Electoral Commission An election commission is a body charged with overseeing the implementation of electioneering process of any country. The formal names of election commissions vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and may be styled an electoral commission, a c ...

in January 2020, and campaigns for the UK to rejoin the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been des ...

European Parliament elections

2019 European Parliament election

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

(unable to raise €800,000 in funding to meet legal requirement to print its own ballot papers),

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

(failed to collect 150,000 signatures),

(failed to collect 2,600 signatures),

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

(failed to collect 7,500 signatures), and

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

(failed to collect a number of voter declarations corresponding to at least 2% of all valid votes at the last general election), Volt had intended to participate in the European Parliament elections but was unable to meet local requirements in time.

National Parliament elections

Bulgaria

Germany

Malta

Netherlands

Portugal

Sweden

Funding

According to the party's financial accounts, it generates most of its income through donations & crowdfunding. It states that it publishes every donation exceeding 3,000 Euro per donation or donor per year within 15 days from its receipt on the party's website. On 9 May 2021, Volt announced that they had raised 40,000 Euros in three weeks in a fundraising drive to professionalize Volt in preparation for the

2024 European Parliament election 4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures. In mathematics Four is the smallest c ...

. Every Volt Chapter commits to the same donation rule of publishing every donation exceeding 3,000 Euros, which can also be observed on the websites of Volt Germany and Netherlands.

Awards

International cooperation

From 14 to 19 July 2021, Volt Europa delegates travelled to

Yerevan Yerevan ( , , hy, Երևան , sometimes spelled Erevan) is the capital and largest city of Armenia and one of the world's List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest continuously inhabited cities. Situated along the Hrazdan River, Y ...

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...

, to meet with representatives of the

European Party of Armenia The European Party of Armenia () is a pro-European political party in Armenia. It was founded on 6 November 2018 by film-maker Tigran Khzmalyan. History The founding congress of the European Party of Armenia was held on 6 November 2018, in Yer ...

. In November 2021, the Cypriot movement

New Wave – The Other Cyprus New Wave – The Other Cyprus ( el, Νέο Κύμα – Η Άλλη Κύπρος, Néo Kýma – I Álli Kýpros) was a political movement in the Republic of Cyprus. The movement's main stated goal was to mobilize society for reform and new prospec ...

and Volt signed a memorandum of understanding for a merger.

Notes

:1. ISMV coalition won 13 seats in parliament in the

July 2021 Bulgarian parliamentary election Snap parliamentary elections were held in Bulgaria on 11 July 2021 after no party was able or willing to form a government following the April 2021 Bulgarian parliamentary election, April 2021 elections.ISMV coalition won 14 seats in parliament in the April 2021 Bulgarian parliamentary election, none of which were allocated to members of Volt. :3. Renew Scotland contested in five regions and no constituencies in the

References

External links

* *
Programme across Europe for the elections to the European Parliament
{{Volt Europa 2017 establishments in Europe Eurofederalism International organizations based in Europe Political movements in Europe Pro-Europeanism Pro-European political parties in the United Kingdom Pan-European Pro-European political parties