Joshua Meadows Emily Pegg

Background After World War II European countries needed a new system of travel and trade that would reduce conflict In 1958 the European Economic Community (EEC) formed between Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands The EEC began dealing with issues of policies that dealt with issues other than the economy, such as the environment and citizens’ rights. In 1993 the EEC changed its name to the European Union (EU)

Unique Characteristics The European Union is a confederation made up of 28 countries Countries within the European Union have no border laws between one another which allows people to travel freely between them The EU has an official currency (Euros) that all of its members use

Constitution All citizens of the EU have rights that are documented in the Charter of Fundamental Rights The Charter has seven chapters titled Dignity, Freedoms, Equality, Solidarity, Citizens’ Rights, Justice, and General Provisions

Rule of Law The EU’s court system is based on the European Court of Justice (ECJ) The ECJ has 28 judges, one for each country The ECJ has a president that is elected by the judges and serves a renewable term of three years The ECJ operates similarly to the US’s Supreme Court system The ECJ acts as an arbiter between EU countries

Economy The European Union is the largest importer and exporter of goods and services in the world EU countries can trade among one another without tariffs or borders

Structure of Government Treaties and laws are created by the "institutional triangle”. The Council The European Parliament The European Commission

The Council The main decision making body present Each member state takes a six month turn in the position The Council has the legislative power and decisions are made with a majority vote, a qualified majority, or a unanimous vote from member state representatives They meet 4 times a year

The European Parliament elected body representing the citizens of the EU and participates in the legislative process as well directly elected every five years

The European Commission Manages the EU with members that are appointed by the Council for five year terms There is one Commissioner from each member state Its main job is to uphold the common interest of the EU

Other Stuff In addition to these three main divisions, the EU also has courts, committees, and banks which participate on certain issues and aid in successful management. In 2009 there was 736 members

Process for Elections There is no uniform voting system for the election each member state is free to choose its own system, subject to three restrictions: a) The system must be a form of proportional representation, under either the party list or the single transferable vote system. b) The electoral area may be subdivided if this will not generally affect the proportional nature of the voting system. c) Any election threshold at the national level must not exceed five percent. There is no precise formula for the apportionment of seats among member states

Challenges Globalization – Some countries fear the EU will become too powerful Economy – Greece just had an economic collapse Competition – The EU must compete with powerful countries such as China and the US