Kostas Koukoumakas
Reporting from Athens

After the close of voting in Greece, the first exit poll results show the ruling party, New Democracy, comes first with between 28% and 32%.

The main opposition Syriza takes between 15.2% and 18.2% and Pasok socialists come third with between 10.9% and 13.9%.

Far-right, pro-Russian party Greek Solution takes 7.6% to 10% and the ultra-conservative Niki is recording 2.9% to 4.9%.

With 3% being the minimum threshold for electing an MEP, the end result will be marginal for the party of Yanis Varoufakis, Greece’s former finance minister (his party MeRA25 takes 2% to 3.4%), the same for the newly emerging far-right Voice of Logic (2.2% - 3.6%).

More reliable data will be published at around 21:00 local time (18:00 GMT).

Damien McGuinness
Reporting from Berlin

After initial predictions, the far-right AfD has come second in Germany's European Parliament elections, beating Chancellor Olaf Scholz's centre-left SPD and his coalition partners the Greens.

The strongest party is predicted to be the conservative CDU/CSU, with 30%.

Conservatives and the far right are already celebrating, saying this is the end of Scholz's left-wing-led government, ahead of national elections in 2025.

The Greens and the SPD scored lower results than 2019, with predicted results of 12.5% and 14% respectively.

The AfD is predicted to win 16%, 5% higher than in 2019.

This comes despite numerous scandals and despite the two lead candidates being banned from campaigning.

The far right did well in eastern Germany, paving the way, say AfD leaders, to a win in regional elections in September.

Far-right Freedom Party celebrates reported gains in Austriapublished at 17:26 British Summer Time 9 June

17:26 BST 9 June

Bethany Bell
Reporting from Vienna

The far-right Freedom Party, FPÖ, is celebrating.

After voting closed on Sunday evening, a forecast poll based on surveys carried out over the past week shows them comfortably in first place with 27%.

That’s ahead of the conservative People’s Party, ÖVP, with 23.5%, and the Social Democrats, SPÖ, with 23%.

If this forecast is confirmed, it will be the first time the FPÖ has come in first place in a nationwide election in Austria. It suggests a dramatic change of fortune for the party.

Support for the FPÖ collapsed in 2019, after the "Ibizagate" scandal, in which its former leader was caught on video promising government contracts to a woman posing as the niece of a Russian oligarch.

But the party has capitalised on voter discontent with the Covid-19 pandemic measures, as well as rises in the cost of living and concerns about the war in Ukraine.

The EU election is seen by many Austrians as a rehearsal for the general election here this autumn, and the Freedom Party is feeling confident.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats are heading for third place, according to exit polls in Germany's European vote.

The Christian Democrat CDU and CSU are on course to obtain up to 30% of the vote and the far-right AfD are set to get 16-16.5%, with the SPD far behind on 14%.

Scholz's Green coalition allies are set to come in fourth with around 12%, while the liberal FDP is down at 5%, the exit polls say.

In 2019, the AfD got 11% of the votes and SPD 15.8%. The Greens had obtained 20.5%.

Paul Kirby
Europe digital editor

Image source, WOJTEK RADWANSKI/AFP

The EU's 27 electorates are very different, so it's not always easy to draw any conclusion on turnout figures and what they mean.

But already we're getting some really interesting figures from several countries, and it just shows how varied they are.

In France, turnout by 17:00 local time (15:00 GMT) was 45.26%, which is almost two points higher than the last European elections five years ago. Polling experts believe the final figure will be between 52-53%, and it was only 50.12% in 2019.

In the Netherlands too participation was up to almost 47% on Thursday, according to the exit poll, the highest for 35 years.

But in Poland and Greece, it's not looking quite so good. By midday in Poland, turnout was almost three points down at 11.66%. The BBC's Adam Easton in Warsaw says turnout is always low, even though pro-EU sentiment is high.

And in Greece, with just 90 minutes of voting to go, turnout was at 32.9%, and it could be heading for the lowest figure since joining the EU.

Kostas Koukoumakas
Reporting from Athens

Image source, EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

With the temperature climbing to 33C, the number of those who go to the polls in the Greek capital, Athens, rivals the number of those who preferred to go to the beach for a swim.

Voter turnout in the European elections stood at 26.1% nationwide by 14:30 local time (11:30 GMT), which means a total of 2,504,389 voters had cast their ballots by that time.

For comparison, turnout at the same time in the June 2023 national elections was 31.5%.

Apart from the turnout and the looming lead of the governing party, interest is also focused today on the percentage that the far-right parties will add up to.

Polls are open until 19:00.

Rob Cameron
Reporting from Prague

Image source, AP

Slovakia’s left populist Smer party had hoped to capitalise on the attempted assassination of Prime Minister - and party leader - Robert Fico on 15 May.

The party - which rejects Western military support for Ukraine - made last-minute changes to some of its billboards, replacing the slogan "For peace in Europe" with "For peace - for Robert Fico".

However, unofficial polling carried out by parties suggests Smer was beaten into second place by its chief opposition rival, the liberal Progressive Slovakia (PS).

Those figures suggest PS will return six of Slovakia’s 15 MEPs, compared to five for Smer. It’s unclear which European Parliament group they will join.

Smer and fellow leftists Hlas were suspended from the Party of European Socialists in October after they formed a coalition government with the far-right Slovak National Party.

Nick Thorpe
Reporting from Budapest

"Today, the people of Hungary can tell the governing Fidesz party, 'this far, and no further'," commented Peter Magyar, leader of the TISZA party, the main challenger to Fidesz, after voting this morning.

Prime Minister Viktor Orban, replying to a reporter’s question after he voted, said: “I am not responsible for the polarisation (of Hungarian society). I’m a man of peace."

Asked about the large crowds which turned out for his rival Peter Magyar’s national campaign tour, Orban said that "a high turnout is good for Hungarian democracy".

Laura Gozzi
Europe reporter in Rome

Image source, Getty Images

For French politician Raphaël Glucksmann, the stakes are high - and not just because some are pinning the hopes of the entire French Socialist Party on him.

Glucksmann has revealed he made a bet with his kids that he would quit smoking if he managed to achieve a certain result at the European elections.

He didn't specify what that result was - but opinion polls indicate his Socialist Party might get up to 15% of the vote and possibly come in second place overall.

"It is now looking extremely likely I'll actually have to quit smoking," he told French media last month.

Glucksmann is known to be a heavy smoker - so a victory today could come with an additional challenge.

Christian Fraser
Reporting from Brussels

The first vote estimates are beginning to come in and then in a few hours’ time the first projected results will come. They’ll appear on a giant screen that’s been set up in the European Parliament’s hemicycle voting chamber, where the 720 new MEPS will sit.

Austria's far-right Freedom Party is already on course to win, according to a trend forecast based on exit polls. That could be repeated in several other EU countries, with the greens and the liberals largely paying the price.

The leaders of France and Germany warned ahead of this vote that the very future of Europe was on the ballot.

That sounds dramatic but the shape of this European Parliament will influence where Europe goes next. And this will be a parliament that takes us almost to 2030.

Big decisions are still be taken on enlargement, the integration of European energy, climate regulation, the size of the European budget, and of course Europe’s response to the war in Ukraine.

Bethany Bell
Reporting from Vienna

After the close of voting in Austria, a trend forecast shows the far-right Freedom Party has won, with 27%.

The conservative People’s Party is currently in second place, with 23.5% and the Social Democrats with 23%.

If this forecast is confirmed, it will be the first time the Freedom Party has come in first place in a nationwide election in Austria.

Adam Easton
Reporting from Warsaw

At midday local time (10:00 GMT), turnout in Poland was 11.66%, down from 14.39% at the same time during the 2019 election, the state electoral commission said.

Poles are more positive about the EU than in any other member state, but European elections often do not inspire them. There were a lot more people taking part in a 10km race outside my local voting station than there were inside it.

In three of the four European elections held since Poland joined in 2004, turnout failed to exceed 25%.

Prime Minister Donald Tusk urged people to vote: “Bad politicians are elected by good citizens who stay at home,” he wrote on X.

Image source, Reuters

Kostas Koukoumakas
Reporting from Athens

Image source, Aris MESSINIS / AFP

It was pretty quiet at the 1st High School in Kifissia, north of Athens, earlier, so while Greek media were waiting for Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis to show up, there was a lot of interest in a cyclist who turned up with his bike.

"I have training scheduled and then we will go with my family to the sea," he told reporters, before cycling off.

In all, 31 Greek political parties are taking part in today's European elections and voters can choose up to four candidates on their ballot.

About 9.7 million people are eligible to vote and for the first time in Greece, 17-year-olds have been able to take part. That means there are a potential 111,500 first-time voters.

Paul Kirby
Europe digital editor in Brussels

Image source, Philip Reynaers / Photonews via Getty Images

Twenty-six million Europeans are eligible to vote for the first time in these elections - and that includes two million aged 16 and 17.

Sixteen year olds have already been able to vote before in Austria and Malta, but today it's a first in Belgium and in Germany. In Greece, they're allowed to vote from 17.

I didn't see many young voters at the Brussels polling station I visited, but Belgium's youngest princess, Eléonore, did show up to vote this morning, along with her older brothers and Crown Princess Elisabeth.

And young Belgians will know that voting here is not just a democratic right, it's a legal duty. If they don't show up, they could face a fine, although in practice non-voters tend to escape prosecution.

Guy Hedgecoe
Reporting from Madrid

Spain’s Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, has said these elections offer a clear choice between “a Europe that continues to give a solidarity-based response to the challenges and crises that we face, or a reactionary Europe of cuts, backwardness”.

He made his comments after casting his vote in the Spanish capital, Madrid.

Jorge Buxadé, candidate for the far-right Vox, described the Socialist leader’s comments as “despicable” and claimed that they encouraged political violence.

Turnout at 14:00 local time (12:00 GMT) was 28%. That is seven points lower than at the same time in 2019, although on that occasion, local elections were held on the same day.

Barbara Tasch
Live reporter in London

This European election is the first one since 1979 that the UK is not participating in.

Even though the referendum to leave the European Union took place in 2016, it took until 2020 for the UK to officially leave the bloc so that at the time of the last EU elections in May 2019, the country elected 73 Members of the European Parliament.

UK voter turnout in 1979 - the very first election for the European Parliament which only included eight other countries that formed the European Community - was 32%.

Some 50 years later, voter turnout had actually increased, to just over 37%.

Laura Gozzi
Europe reporter in Rome

You’ll be hearing a lot about “groupings” today. But what are they?

Europeans vote for parties based in their own countries - for instance, the Christian Democrats in Germany, the Socialists in Spain or Emmanuel Macron's Renaissance party in France.

These parties are affiliated with political groupings in the European Parliament, which is where people's votes ultimately go to, translating into seats for MEPs (Members of the European Parliament).The seven groupings are:

• The centre-right European People's Party (EPP)
• The centre-left Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D)
• The liberal Renew Europe group
• The Greens/European Free Alliance
• The right-wing European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR)
• The far-right Identity and Democracy (ID)
• The left-wing Left

Laura Gozzi
Europe reporter in Rome

It's a hot day in Rome - temperatures are hitting 32C, and it feels like summer is properly under way.

It seems it's mostly tourists who are roaming the streets - many locals will have left town for the nearby beaches or the countryside.

As a result, some polling stations in central Rome are completely empty.

Voting in Italy opened yesterday afternoon and as of lunchtime hovered around 25%.

Polls are open until 23:00 local time (21:00 GMT), so it's possible that Italians will leave it late and go vote this evening once their weekend activities are over.

Bethany Bell
Reporting from Vienna

Voting has already come to an end in the western Austrian province of Vorarlberg, where the polling stations closed at 13:00 (11:00 GMT).

But people are still casting their votes in other parts of the country.

The polling stations stay open the longest in the capital Vienna, where voting is possible until 17:00 local time.

The leading candidates have already cast their ballots.

Austria’s President Alexander Van der Bellen called on people to go out and vote. Speaking after he voted at the polling station at the Music University in Vienna, he said he expected a majority “that is aware of the need for a united Europe".

Image source, Reuters

Nick Thorpe
Reporting from Budapest

In Hungary, turnout by 13:00 local time (11:00 GMT) was significantly higher - in some settlements up to 10% - than usual. Hungary is holding European and municipal elections on the same day.

Turnout was notably high - between 31% and 37% - in three cities Debrecen, God, and Ivancsa, which host controversial EV battery factories, according to independent news portal 444.

In hot summer weather, voters have fainted or tripped in several voting stations.

In Komádi, the head of the local voting committee fell and twisted his elbow. In Vámosgyörk voting took place by torchlight after a power cut.