On 23 May, the final debate between the Lead Candidates for the presidency of the European Commission will take place in Brussels from 15:00-16:45 CET. The Eurovision Debate will be broadcast on public service media channels and online platforms across Europe and distributed to news organizations globally by Eurovision News, and the European Parliament’s Europe by Satellite service.  

For the first time, the public will also have the opportunity to participate in the debate. Thanks to collaborations between EBU Members and European Parliament Liaison Offices the debate will be brought live to all EU capital cities, so that voters can engage with the debate live and in real time.  

Liz Corbin, Director of News, EBU, said: “The EU elections will take the temperature of public sentiment. The Eurovision Debate is the moment to hold the leaders to account and ask them the questions that are on your mind. We will be bringing the expertise and insights from our newsrooms throughout Europe, to focus on what matters to the public and help them to decide how to vote. This is the debate for the people!”  

With voters as young as 16 in some Member States, young audiences could be a deciding factor in this election. The Eurovision Debate will highlight the voices and concerns of first-time voters in this historic election. 

Working with the European Parliament, invitations were sent to all of the European political parties eligible for the debate and the final line-up will be announced shortly.

Next steps 

The EBU will reach out to voters and ask them to share their questions for the candidates and using #EurovisionDebate, audiences can follow everything that happens.  

On 16 May, a draw will be held during a live event at the European Parliament in Brussels to determine the order of the candidates in the debate.