Is there a divide between Europe’s elites and its citizens?

One of the most frequently cited issues when discussing the EU’s ‘democratic deficit’ is the divide between the opinions of political elites and citizens concerning the integration process. The dwindling turnout in European parliamentary elections is often cited as the most significant proof of the ‘divorce’ between MEPs and their electorate. Focusing on Spain, this analysis presents a descriptive study of a series of interviews with MEPs to mark the anniversary of Spain’s entry into the European Union (then the European Community). The results of this analysis are compared to some responses to the survey conducted by Spain’s Centre for Sociological Research (Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas – CIS) among Spanish citizens regarding Spain’s 20 years of membership in the EU, in order to verify whether there are significant differences between these responses and the MEPs’ assessments. The findings confirmed that pro-European sentiment continues among the political classes, and sound support for integration persists among citizens. However, they also reveal some information which merits attention: first, they show that almost 30% of Spaniards consider that Spain has not benefited from European integration and, secondly, they reveal that an overwhelming majority of citizens (82%) consider that the introduction of the euro has had a negative impact on prices.

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