THE LEGAL CONTOURS OF ELECTORAL RIGHTS COVERED BY ART 22 TFEU – AN EXTENDED PERSPECTIVE OFFERED BY THE CJEU

The judgments in Cases C-808/21 and C-814/21 provide a new perspective on the legal contours of the electoral rights covered by Article 22 TFEU. The CJEU, seized in two infringement proceedings, was called upon to determine the content of electoral rights, in the light of the principle of non-discrimination. In other words, does that principle relate solely to the right to vote and to stand as a candidate or to other ancillary measures guaranteeing participation in political life?

This study aims to shed light on the architecture of the CJEU's legal reasoning in the two cases, emphasizing that the right to participate in the democratic life of the Union is enforceable not only against the European institutions, but also against the Member States, insofar as the latter, through legislative and administrative measures, restrict such a right or diminish its effectiveness.