• Europeans from 21 countries have started voting on the fourth and final day of the EU parliamentary elections.
• The results should be clear late on Sunday, with exit polls in Germany expected at 1600 UTC.
• The Netherlands, the UK, Ireland, the Czech Republic, Latvia, Malta and Slovakia have already voted.

07:45 The election will hopefully strengthen anti-immigration political forces across Europe, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said after casting his vote in Budapest. "I hope that there will be a shift in the European public arena in favour of those political parties who would like to stop migration."

07:15 Support for the Green Party surged in Ireland — where the vote was held on Friday — putting the Greens on course to win as many as three European seats, according to an exit poll for broadcasters RTE/TG4. European Greens co-lead candidate Bas Eickhout spoke of a "green wave" rolling on to Irish shores from the Netherlands, where an exit poll put GroenLinks' (GreenLeft's) share of the vote up to 10.5%.

06:40 The European Parliament forms the democratic basis of the European Union. It plays a key role in electing the president of the European Commission and ensures EU institutions are working democratically. The Parliament shares power over the bloc's budget and legislation with the Council of the European Union, which represents the governments of member states. Elections to the Parliament take place every five years and voter turnout has been steadily declining. In 2014 it was the lowest ever — just 42.5%.

06:25 Around 400 million people are eligible to vote for 751 MEPs who will serve for the next five years and help shape Europe’s future. There's a lot at stake. The issues of Brexit, immigration and the rise of right-wing parties across the bloc could bring some surprises and make these polls the most important since the first direct elections 40 years ago.

06:00 Polling stations in 21 EU countries, including major EU states of Germany, France, Italy, Spain and Poland, have opened.

Read more: EU election: Europeans head to the polls across the continent

Voting is also taking place in Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Greece, Hungary, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia and Sweden.

The Netherlands and the UK headed to the EU polls on Thursday — the first day of election — followed by Ireland and the Czech Republic on Friday and Latvia, Malta and Slovakia on Saturday.

A total of 420 million EU citizens are eligible to cast their ballot in these elections.

According to exit polls, the Netherlands' center-left party of EU Vice President Frans Timmermans won the most votes and added two seats to the Socialists and Democrats (S&D) bloc in the EU Parliament.

In Britain, hundreds of non-British EU citizens were turned away from polling stations on Thursday after being told they were not registered to vote in the UK for the election. The British government is now facing a potential legal challenge over the denial of votes to EU citizens.

As Germany, France, Italy, Spain and Poland send almost half of all MEPs to the European Parliament – 348 out of a total 751 – the Sunday vote is dubbed the most crucial of all rounds. Opinion polls suggest that far-right groups and Euroskeptics could gain more strength in the European Parliament, with populist parties such as Marine Le Pen's National Rally in France and Matteo Salvini's Northern League in Italy are expected to perform well in the polls.

Read more: Opinion: The EU's future and the European Parliament vote </s> BRUSSELS — The Latest on the European Parliament elections taking place Saturday (all times local):

A far-right party in Slovakia that openly admires the country’s wartime Nazi puppet state could win seats in the European Parliament for the first time.

Slovaks are among four countries voting Saturday in the Europe-wide vote, which finishes Sunday.

Polls favor the leftist Smer-Social Democracy party, the senior member of Slovakia’s current coalition government to win the most votes.

Polls suggest People’s Party Our Slovakia, a far-right party that has 14 seats in Slovakia’s parliament, will win seats in the European legislature for the first time.

Party members use Nazi salutes, blame Roma for crime, consider NATO a terror group and want the country out of the alliance and the European Union.

The election reflects a continental struggle between nationalists who want to wrest power back from the EU and moderates who want to make the EU stronger.

Voters in Slovakia, Malta, Latvia and the Czech Republic are casting ballots in European Parliament elections.

The stakes for the European Union are especially high in this year’s elections, which are taking place over four days and involve all 28 EU nations.

Many predict nationalists and far-right groups will gain ground. They would try to use a larger presence in the legislature to claw back power from the EU for their national governments.

More moderate parties want to cement closer ties among countries in the EU.

Britain, Ireland and the Netherlands have already voted. The Czech Republic started voting Friday and continues Saturday. Slovakia, Malta and Latvia are holding their European Parliament elections Saturday — and all the other nations vote Sunday.

Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. </s> Tajani continued to state that if no deal is struck, the partnership between Brussels and London "will be controlled by the norms of the [World Trade Organization] WTO, which include among others tariffs for the goods."

In order to help maintain good relations between the European Union and the United Kingdom, in particular in the area of counterterrorism and defense, Tajani stressed that it is crucial a "clear agreement" is reached during the talks.

"We are hoping that the talks will be successful, and the European Union will be able to speak on the issue of the agreement at the beginning of 2019," the head of the European Parliament said.

The United Kingdom's exit from the European Union formally began on Wednesday, after it was confirmed that a letter triggering Article 50 of the Lisbon treaty, penned and signed by UK Prime Minister Theresa May, was delivered to European Council President Donald Tusk. According to Article 50, the United Kingdom now has two years to complete the negotiations, and must leave the European Union on March 29, 2019.

The talks between London and Brussels are expected to be mainly focused on the issue of mutual recognition of the rights of EU nationals in the United Kingdom and UK citizens in the European Union, as well as on maintaining free access to the markets and freedom of movement. The talks are expected to begin as early as this coming May. </s> Scottish parliament votes in support of holding second independence referendum

The Scottish parliament voted on Tuesday in favor of a bid to hold the second independence referendum in light of Brexit between autumn 2018 and spring 2019, Sputnik reported.

As many as 69 lawmakers voted in favor, while 59 voted against.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon is now able to officially ask the UK parliament for permission to hold a new vote in Scotland.

Last week, Sturgeon recalled that Scotland voted overwhelmingly against Brexit in last year's referendum, stressing that the country should not be taken out of Europe against its will.

In 2014, Scotland voted to remain part of the United Kingdom, however, the 2016 Brexit vote showed that Scotland differed from England on the European Union membership, as it backed staying with the bloc by 62 percent against 38 percent.

Scotland is now split roughly in half on the issue of independence, according to the latest Ipsos MORI poll, in a significant change from 2014, when 55 percent voted against leaving the United Kingdom.

UK Prime Minister Theresa May is expected to initiate the talks on the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union on March 29. The UK parliament has already passed the government's Brexit bill unamended.

May's government has made strong statements against a mid-Brexit second Scottish independence referendum, while Sturgeon insisted that its timing for 2018-2019 would be "common sense" as an outline of a post-Brexit UK-EU deal would become clear by then and allow Scots to make a rational decision. </s> "The arrival of these companies will attract other service providers and strengthen the access of Dutch pension funds and other asset managers to the financial markets," AFM Chairwoman Merel van Vroonhoven said on Tuesday said, as quoted by the Dutchnews.nl portal.

READ MORE: UK Chancellor Raises Brexit Funding to $2.5 Billion, Claims Austerity's No More

Van Vroonhoven expects that the Netherlands may host up to 30-40 percent of European financial instruments trading after Brexit.

In June 2016, the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union. Although Brexit is scheduled for late March 2019, London and Brussels still cannot agree on a number of key issues, including the Irish border and customs arrangements, making a no-deal scenario a possibility.

In July, Catherine McGuinness, the chairperson of the policy and resources committee of the City of London, said that the UK financial sector could lose up to 12,000 jobs due to Brexit because many financial companies were relocating their businesses to the European Union. According to the Bank of England estimates, the City may lose as many as 5,000 jobs by late March 2019, when the United Kingdom is set to withdraw from the European Union. </s> Between Thursday and Sunday, millions will choose who represents them at the European Parliament (EP), the European Union's (EU) parliamentary institution directly elected by citizens aged 18 or older.

The EU is often considered an obscure and technocratic body - somewhere between a nation-state and an international organisation such as the United Nations. Many have lost faith in its ability to improve their lives.

But with Brexit looming and nationalist populism on the rise, this year's election - a political event held every five years - is seen by many as decisive for its future.

Britain and the Netherlands kick off voting on Thursday.

Here is what you need to know:

What is European Parliament and how will elections work?

The EP is effectively the lower house of the EU's legislative branch. It can't propose legislation - that's the European Commission's prerogative - or decide on a budget like a regular parliament. But all EU laws must be approved by a majority of EP members (MEPs) to then be applied in all 28 member states.

Originally, the EP's powers were limited. But as the EU grew and its member states shared more responsibilities, the EP became co-legislator with the European Council.

Elections are held at the national level and respect each country's electoral tradition. The British and the Dutch will be first to vote on May 23, followed by the Irish on May 24, and the Maltese, Latvians and the Slovaks on May 25. Most countries will vote on May 26, a Sunday. The minimum age to vote is 18, except in Austria and Malta where it's 16.

There are 751 seats, but this number will go down to 705 after Britain exits the bloc.

Each member state is allocated a certain number of representatives, or MEPs, depending on their total population.

Germany, the most populous EU member, will send 96 MEPs to Brussels, whereas Malta and Luxembourg only get to elect six.

Every country votes on the principle of proportional representation, meaning that each political party or list of candidates gets a number of seats equivalent to their share of the vote.

A party needs to gather at least 5% of the votes in one country to enter the European Parliament (EP).

There are eight pan-European political groups that MEPs can choose to join.

It takes 25 MEPs from seven different countries to form a political group.

The two largest groups are the centre-right European People Party (EPP) and the centre-left Socialists and Democrats (S&D). The right-wing eurosceptic European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) is the third largest.

Current EP President Antonio Tajani, an Italian, is with the EPP.

For the first time since 1979, the centre-left and the centre-right could lose their majority and wave goodbye to their ruling coalition.

"The centre-left will recede again, the centre-right should minimise their losses, and the far right will continue to rise. But the big question is: what will happen at the centre?," said Amandine Crespy, a professor of European studies at the Universite Libre de Bruxelles.

In terms of voter turnout, between 1979 and 2014, it fell from 62% to only 42%. This year's projections don't look optimistic.

Why is the 2019 vote important?

There are two factors. The first is that the vote takes place amid Brexit, which marks the first time a country will leave the EU.

"There is now a feeling of urgency, Europe is going through an existential crisis," said Crespy.

The second is that the vote could also be divisive because of an expected rise in anti-EU forces, or Eurosceptics.

"Those parties oppose the principle of a democratic EU and want to change it from within," said Sylvain Kahn, a professor of European studies at Science Po Paris.

According to Shahin Vallee, a researcher at the European Institute of LSE, "They will set the tone of the European debates for the next five years.

"In May, we will be able to tell what direction the EU will take on a whole number of issues, from the regulation of the GAFAs (giant tech firms) to its attitude towards China, and of course, its migration policy."

How will Brexit affect the vote?

The UK was due to leave the EU on March 29, 2019. But it didn't. The EU Council decided that if the UK doesn't leave before May 22, it should take part in the European elections like any other member state.

"It will turn into a second referendum," said Crespy, "creating an impossible situation in the EP and other European institutions".

Until the UK leaves, it remains a rightful EU member with its EU commissioner, voting rights in the EU Council, and its 73 MEPs, including far-right Nigel Farage - chair of the populist Europe of Freedom and Direct Democracy political group.

Vallee fears the UK's participation in the vote would lead to a "one foot in, one foot out [situation] which would most certainly paralyse the already fragile functioning of the union's institutions".

Will the elections affect the EU's influence on the world stage?

Europe is often seen as an economic giant but political dwarf. The EU remains a political structure in the making.

"Europe's weakness is first and foremost political," said Vallee.

Between 2012 and 2014, during the Eurozone crisis, Vallee was an adviser to then-president of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy.

"The European Union suffers from two evils," he said. "It doesn't have an identified government, able to make strategic decisions like the United States or China. And it lacks democratic legitimacy because the EP is too weak."

Since the creation of the EU in the 1950s, a fierce debate on the notion of sovereignty has agitated the continent.

"The big question is: Will we be more efficient and resilient to cope with world's challenges by uniting with other countries or not? One for all and all for one like the musketeers or by yourself?" said Kahn.

"We need to create European sovereignty. Sovereignty is to be understood as the capacity to act on the world's course; therefore we need a real European government and parliament, independent from the member states."

KEEP UPDATED on the latest news by subscribing to our FREE newsletter. </s> The Latest on the four-day voting in the European Union to fill the 751-seat European Parliament (all times local):

Polls have opened for the European Parliament elections in the Czech Republic, with a centrist party led by populist Prime Minister Andrej Babis expected to win despite the fraud charges he faces involving European Union funds.

The Czechs on Friday opened their two-day ballot for their country's 21 seats in the 751-seat European Parliament. Voters in the Netherlands and Britain on Thursday kicked off four days of voting across the 28-nation bloc.

Babis' ANO (YES) movement is predicted to win up to 25% of the vote, followed by the moderate euroskeptic Civic Democratic Party and the pro-European Pirate party.

Babis wants his country to remain in the bloc but is calling for EU reforms.

The country's most ardent anti-EU group, the Freedom and Direct Democracy party, is predicted to win around 10% of the vote and capture its first seats in the EU legislature.

Protesters are holding rallies in several European Union countries to demand tougher action against global warming, as the 28-nation bloc votes to fill the European Parliament.

Thousands attended a rally Friday in Berlin, where mostly young people waved banners with slogans such as "There is no planet B" or "Plant trees, save the bees, clean the seas."

Many protesters will be too young to vote when Germans cast ballots Sunday in the European Parliament election, but are pressing family and older friends to consider the world's long-term future.

Clara Kirchhoff said the election for the EU's 751-seat assembly was particularly important for tackling climate change on a continental level.

The 17-year-old says "there's no point in Germany doing a lot for the climate and others not pulling their weight

Ireland is going to the polls to kick off the second day of European Union elections which have already caused a stir in the Netherlands.

According to a surprise Ipsos exit forecast late Thursday, the Dutch Labor Party of European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans will become the country's biggest party in the European Parliament.

Britain also voted on Thursday, and in neighboring Ireland polls opened Friday morning. The Czech Republic was set to open two days of voting in the early afternoon.

By Sunday night, all 28 nations will have voted and results will start to come in. The vote is seen as a battle between pro-EU parties and those who seek to wrest power from the EU and back to national capitals.

Pro-European Dutch parties were predicted to win most of the country's seats in the European Parliament, with right-wing populist opponents of the European Union managing to take only four of the nation's 26 seats.

In a surprise forecast, the Dutch Labor Party of European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans on Thursday became the country's biggest party in the 751-seat European Parliament, according to an Ipsos exit poll.

The poll was published by Dutch national broadcaster NOS after polling stations closed Thursday evening in Netherlands. Earlier in the day, Dutch and British voters kicked off the first of four days of voting for the European Parliament in all of the EU's 28 nations.

Official results will only be announced after the last polling station in the EU closes late Sunday.

The Dutch Labor party was forecast to win five seats, while the pro-European center right VVD of Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte gained one seat to win a total of four seats. Populists also won four seats. </s> (AP) — The Latest on the four-day voting in the European Union to fill the 751-seat European Parliament (all times local):

Polls have opened for the European Parliament elections in the Czech Republic, with a centrist party led by populist Prime Minister Andrej Babis expected to win despite the fraud charges he faces involving European Union funds.

The Czechs on Friday opened their two-day ballot for their country’s 21 seats in the 751-seat European Parliament. Voters in the Netherlands and Britain on Thursday kicked off four days of voting across the 28-nation bloc.

Babis’ ANO (YES) movement is predicted to win up to 25% of the vote, followed by the moderate euroskeptic Civic Democratic Party and the pro-European Pirate party.

Babis wants his country to remain in the bloc but is calling for EU reforms.

The country’s most ardent anti-EU group, the Freedom and Direct Democracy party, is predicted to win around 10% of the vote and capture its first seats in the EU legislature.

Protesters are holding rallies in several European Union countries to demand tougher action against global warming, as the 28-nation bloc votes to fill the European Parliament.

Thousands attended a rally Friday in Berlin, where mostly young people waved banners with slogans such as “There is no planet B” or “Plant trees, save the bees, clean the seas.”

Many protesters will be too young to vote when Germans cast ballots Sunday in the European Parliament election, but are pressing family and older friends to consider the world’s long-term future.

Clara Kirchhoff said the election for the EU’s 751-seat assembly was particularly important for tackling climate change on a continental level.

The 17-year-old says “there’s no point in Germany doing a lot for the climate and others not pulling their weight

Ireland is going to the polls to kick off the second day of European Union elections which have already caused a stir in the Netherlands.

According to a surprise Ipsos exit forecast late Thursday, the Dutch Labor Party of European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans will become the country’s biggest party in the European Parliament.

Britain also voted on Thursday, and in neighboring Ireland polls opened Friday morning. The Czech Republic was set to open two days of voting in the early afternoon.

By Sunday night, all 28 nations will have voted and results will start to come in. The vote is seen as a battle between pro-EU parties and those who seek to wrest power from the EU and back to national capitals.

Pro-European Dutch parties were predicted to win most of the country’s seats in the European Parliament, with right-wing populist opponents of the European Union managing to take only four of the nation’s 26 seats.

In a surprise forecast, the Dutch Labor Party of European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans on Thursday became the country’s biggest party in the 751-seat European Parliament, according to an Ipsos exit poll.

The poll was published by Dutch national broadcaster NOS after polling stations closed Thursday evening in Netherlands. Earlier in the day, Dutch and British voters kicked off the first of four days of voting for the European Parliament in all of the EU’s 28 nations.

Official results will only be announced after the last polling station in the EU closes late Sunday.

The Dutch Labor party was forecast to win five seats, while the pro-European center right VVD of Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte gained one seat to win a total of four seats. Populists also won four seats. </s> BRUSSELS (AP) - The Latest on the four-day voting in the European Union to fill the 751-seat European Parliament (all times local):

Polls have opened for the European Parliament elections in the Czech Republic, with a centrist party led by populist Prime Minister Andrej Babis expected to win despite the fraud charges he faces involving European Union funds.

The Czechs on Friday opened their two-day ballot for their country’s 21 seats in the 751-seat European Parliament. Voters in the Netherlands and Britain on Thursday kicked off four days of voting across the 28-nation bloc.

Babis’ ANO (YES) movement is predicted to win up to 25% of the vote, followed by the moderate euroskeptic Civic Democratic Party and the pro-European Pirate party.

Babis wants his country to remain in the bloc but is calling for EU reforms.

The country’s most ardent anti-EU group, the Freedom and Direct Democracy party, is predicted to win around 10% of the vote and capture its first seats in the EU legislature.

Protesters are holding rallies in several European Union countries to demand tougher action against global warming, as the 28-nation bloc votes to fill the European Parliament.

Thousands attended a rally Friday in Berlin, where mostly young people waved banners with slogans such as “There is no planet B” or “Plant trees, save the bees, clean the seas.”

Many protesters will be too young to vote when Germans cast ballots Sunday in the European Parliament election, but are pressing family and older friends to consider the world’s long-term future.

Clara Kirchhoff said the election for the EU’s 751-seat assembly was particularly important for tackling climate change on a continental level.

The 17-year-old says “there’s no point in Germany doing a lot for the climate and others not pulling their weight

Ireland is going to the polls to kick off the second day of European Union elections which have already caused a stir in the Netherlands.

According to a surprise Ipsos exit forecast late Thursday, the Dutch Labor Party of European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans will become the country’s biggest party in the European Parliament.

Britain also voted on Thursday, and in neighboring Ireland polls opened Friday morning. The Czech Republic was set to open two days of voting in the early afternoon.

By Sunday night, all 28 nations will have voted and results will start to come in. The vote is seen as a battle between pro-EU parties and those who seek to wrest power from the EU and back to national capitals.

Pro-European Dutch parties were predicted to win most of the country’s seats in the European Parliament, with right-wing populist opponents of the European Union managing to take only four of the nation’s 26 seats.

In a surprise forecast, the Dutch Labor Party of European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans on Thursday became the country’s biggest party in the 751-seat European Parliament, according to an Ipsos exit poll.

The poll was published by Dutch national broadcaster NOS after polling stations closed Thursday evening in Netherlands. Earlier in the day, Dutch and British voters kicked off the first of four days of voting for the European Parliament in all of the EU’s 28 nations.

Official results will only be announced after the last polling station in the EU closes late Sunday.

The Dutch Labor party was forecast to win five seats, while the pro-European center right VVD of Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte gained one seat to win a total of four seats. Populists also won four seats.
European citizens in the United Kingdom and the Netherlands vote in the first day of 2019's European Parliament elections.