World
Baby or ballot? Members of the EU Parliament won’t have to choose
Pregnant members of the European Parliament will be allowed to delegate their vote during their time off with their newborns in a landmark step for women in politics.
Until now, the European Parliament did not allow online or proxy voting – meaning a delegated vote passed to another member of the parliament.
With the changes approved this week, pregnant women will be able to delegate their vote three months before giving birth and six months afterwards. The motion passed with 605 votes in favor out of the 640 represented in the chamber.
Laura Ballarín, of the S&D, is expecting a child and welcomed the move, arguing that votes can go to the wire and each person matters. She said the move, if applied on time, will allow her to keep representing her constituents.
“I don’t like having to choose between having to recover physically after giving birth and my right to vote,” Ballarín told Euronews. Having a child, she argued, should not represent a setback for women at work.
While the delegated vote has been approved by the European Parliament, it now needs to be approved unanimously by the European Council. Then it will have to be ratified by the national parliaments before it enters into force.
“We must encourage more women to stand for election; we must empower them to take their place at the decision-making table”, European Parliament President Roberta Metsola said during a press conference after the vote on Thursday.
Following the European elections in June 2024, the Parliament experienced the biggest percentage drop in female representation since the first direct elections in 1979.
Women now make up 38.5% of MEPs – 277 out of 720 – 2.1% fewer than in the previous legislature.
No amendments on fatherhood
The new rules will apply to women only.
While progressive forces of the parliament tried to include fathers, they had to dial down their initial ambition to reach a compromise with the rest of political forces.
“I had to choose between voting the climate law or seeing my child being born,” German Green MEP Daniel Freund told Euronews. The choice, he argued in the end was clear: his family.
But the predicament raises serious questions.
The European parliament issued last year an EU-wide directive which regulates maternity and parental leave to include both parents. The idea being that maternity leave tends to impact a woman’s career more than it does for a man as the time spent away from work is usually longer.
“In this Parliament, we have legislated on maternity and paternity leave for both and we have introduced that right for all Europeans. We should lead by example,” Freund added.
As for Ballarín, who is expecting her baby early next year, both parents play an important role in bringing up a child.
“Fathers should also be able to stay home with a newborn without skipping their democratic duty,” Ballarín told Euronews, referring to her male colleagues in the chamber.
Unable to reach the hemicycle
Members of the European Parliament must cast their vote in person in Brussels or in Strasbourg, which involves travel for the 720-members of the chamber.
“We need to make sure that if you are physically impeded from travelling to Strasbourg or to Brussels to vote, then you should not lose that right”, said President Metsola.
For the time being, the reform will only apply to pregnancy or birth but doesn’t consider other impediments such as long-term sickness. Online voting was tested during the pandemic and worked during the lockdown phase, but it was not extended beyond.
Some argue the system proved that it possible to vote without being present in the room and could be helpful for MEPs who are suffering from an illness, or physical impediment.
Trump congratulates Colombia presidential candidate
Trump congratulated Abelardo De La Espriella, known by many as ‘El Tigre,’ following an initial ballot count. While not officially called, the narrow lead signals a potential rightward shift for Colombia. (Reuters.)
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Progressive candidate Iván Cepeda on Wednesday conceded Colombia’s presidential election to conservative outsider Abelardo de la Espriella, who was endorsed by President Donald Trump.
The concession came days after Cepeda initially refused to acknowledge defeat following preliminary results that showed de la Espriella as the apparent winner.
“At this stage of the vote count, I have decided to accept the result emerging from that process, which indicates that Abelardo de la Espriella is the new President of the Republic,” Cepeda said in an address to the nation.
“I do so as an act of democratic responsibility.”
TRUMP SAYS COLOMBIA’S ‘EL TIGRE’ WILL BE A ‘GREAT PRESIDENT’ AS SOCIALIST OPPONENT LAUNCHES LEGAL CHALLENGE
Ivan Cepeda speaks during a campaign rally in Cali, Colombia, on June 6, 2026. (AFP via Getty Images)
De la Espriella, a businessman and lawyer who had never previously run for office, known to his supporters as “El Tigre,” defeated Senate member Iván Cepeda by one percentage point in a remarkably close election, according to officials.
“The vote count shows an extraordinarily narrow margin between the two options vying for the trust of the Colombian people,” he said. “Less than 1% of the vote separates the candidacies that participated in this contest.”
Despite his concession, Cepeda made serious allegations that de la Espriella’s victory was influenced by “foreign interference” by the United States and the use of artificial intelligence to manipulate voters.
“During this process, we denounced the open and improper foreign interference in Colombia’s internal affairs—particularly the interventions by the United States government, and specifically the interventions by President Donald Trump in support of Abelardo de la Espriella’s candidacy,” he said.
He further accused the opposing campaign of widespread vote-buying and unethical tactics that he said undermined the legitimacy of the election results.
ANTI-CARTEL HARDLINER CHANNELS TRUMP IN BID TO END COLOMBIA’S LEFTIST ERA IN PIVOTAL ELECTION
Abelardo de la Espriella delivers a speech to supporters during a campaign rally in Palmira, near Cali, Colombia on May 14, 2026. (Joaquin Sarmiento/AFP via Getty Images)
President-elect de la Espriella will begin his four-year term in August.
“Starting August 7, we will work with determination to consolidate a common agenda that strengthens the security, freedom, and prosperity of our nations,” de la Espriella in a post on X.
The result will effectively end outgoing President Gustavo Petro’s leftist influence on the state and the policies Cepeda had pledged to continue if he won the election.
Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro, left, and President Donald Trump are shown in separate photographs. (Mauro Pimentel/AFP via Getty Images; Francis Chung/Politico/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
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A core pillar of Petro’s signature agenda was his “total peace” strategy, aimed at opening negotiations with remaining guerrilla forces, drug cartels, and armed paramilitary groups in an effort to end Colombia’s decades long internal conflict.
In contrast, de la Espriella has pledged a more hardline approach, including a militarized crackdown on criminal organizations, proposals to build mega-prisons, expand fossil fuel fracking, and revive the controversial practice of aerial glyphosate spraying to eradicate coca crops.
The president-elect, who holds dual Colombian and U.S. citizenship, has also said he plans to add Colombia to the Trump-dubbed “Shield of the Americas,” a proposed coalition aimed at coordinating efforts against criminal groups in Latin America.
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Ten years after the UK voted to exit the European Union, the debate over Brexit’s legacy is far from over. MEPs Barry Andrews (Renew Europe) and Sander Smit (European Conservatives & Reformists) go head-to-head on whether Brexit has strengthened or weakened Europe—and whether Britain could or should one day return to the bloc.
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For Irish MEP Barry Andrews, the answer is clear. He argues that leaving the EU was a mistake and a “total disaster” for the UK, pointing to years of political instability and economic challenges since the referendum. He also contends that Brexit has ultimately strengthened support for the European project, stating that “there is nobody looking to leave the European Union anymore.”
Dutch MEP Sander Smit takes a different view, saying the EU still misses “the UK’s crucial voice for fiscal and financial discipline” and warning against a more centralised Europe. “Our future lies in a stronger partnership,” he says. “Let the UK and EU countries move beyond the past and work together as natural, sovereign allies.”
The Ring is hosted by Méabh Mc Mahon, produced by Luis Albertos Altarejos and Amaia Echevarria, and edited by Vassilis Glynos.
You can contact us at: thering@euronews.com
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