STA, 24 April 2019 - With less funds available than before last year's general election, Slovenian parties entering a month-long campaign for the 26 May EU elections are betting on direct contact with voters and social media.
They have until 26 April to file their lists of candidates with the National Electoral Commission. Then, campaigning gets formally under way, ending on 24 May at midnight, when election blackout sets in until polls close on 26 May in the evening.
The parties plan to engage in different forms of direct campaigning, such as MEP candidates meeting voters around the country or hosting various events and debates.
Prime Minister Marjan Šarec's LMŠ has already launched its campaigning by collecting signatures in support of its election bid at stalls around Slovenia.
The Marjan Šarec List's (LMŠ) says its campaigning will be based on various debates and on posting free ads on social media.
Similarly, the opposition Democrats (SDS) and the non-parliamentary People's Party (SLS), which have a joint slate, are betting on a door-to-door campaign, but also on attracting voters via posters as well as traditional and new media.
The coalition Social Democrats (SD) will opt for what they term a classic campaign but will also use digital media. The party deems it vital to be in direct contact with people so it plans a series of field events.
The opposition Left, which also favours a direct contact with voters, considers it important to combine various communications channels, traditional and digital ones alike.
Field trips around Slovenia will be the order of the day for the opposition New Slovenia (NSi), which will also promote its candidates on the social media and on the internet in general.
Meanwhile, the coalition Alenka Bratušek Party (SAB) will focus its campaign on its frontrunner, Austrian ALDE MEP Angelika Mlinar, a member of the Slovenian minority.
Social media and posters around the country will also be used apart from SAB candidates giving interviews and engaging in other promotional events in the media.
Similarly, the coalition Pensioners' Party (DeSUS) will focus on its frontrunner, MEP Igor Šoltes, who is to meet potential voters in person at more than 50 events.
DeSUS also plans to campaign by sending voters mail and fliers and by addressing them on social media.
The coalition Modern Centre Party (SMC) and the opposition National Party (SNS) have not responded to the STA's queries about their election campaigning.
As they file their lists of candidates, the parties will also have to provide information about the special bank account they opened to finance the election campaigns.
Under the Slovenian law on election and referendum campaigns, the costs of EU election campaigning should not exceed EUR 0.40 per voter, which translates to roughly EUR 680,000 per party.
But judging by their announcements, the parties will spend much less, as many of them are in the red following last year's general and local elections, and a referendum.
Among the parties which have told the STA how much they plan to spend, the SDS will spend the most, expectedly around EUR 200,000.
The Left is still working on its financial plan, but intends to spend no more than EUR 70,000. Much more modest campaigns of around EUR 30,000 are planned by the SD and DeSUS.
The LMŠ, however, has only said the exact sum will be known after the elections, but the party will try to be economical.
Although the NSi is still finalising the details, its campaign will be cheaper than the one for the 2018 general elections.
While parties are not allowed to get funds for campaigns for general and local elections or for referendums from abroad, they can get donations from EU citizens for their EU campaign under the same conditions as from individuals in Slovenia.
This means a foreign individual can donate up to ten average monthly gross salaries to a Slovenian party for the EU elections.
This translates to roughly EUR 17,000 gross, since the average monthly gross salary in February, the last available data, amounted to slightly over EUR 1,700.
All our stories about this year’s EU elections are here
