Who will be the next US President? Clinton? Bush?

Campaigning for the designation of “president of the United States” has already begun, although citizens are expected to vote only in November 2016 for their future president.

That's right, it is now almost two years before said election. But following the US electoral system, the "brand" of the new president, unlike that of the European leaders (who, despite televised debates around the 2014 elections, still do not have a real European "brand"), is built long before he or she is installed in the White House.

People are already talking about who will be the next president. According to a survey recently published in the United States, out of the more than 10 candidates, Hillary Clinton has chance to win 54% of the votes in the 2016 presidential elections.

What happens across the Atlantic gives value to citizens and the communication surrounding the elections has a significant impact on the legitimacy. Even on the European continent the name of the American president is more known than the names of those heading the main European institutions: the Parliament, the Commission, or the Council...

The European project needs a pan-European debate – one where, for example, the Danish leader to speaks directly to the Slovenians and Bulgarians. The steps toward EU democratization must continue to be taken along the path already tried in 2014. It’s not too early to talk about this in the framework of preparing the 2019 EP elections.

The effect? More real debate on the EU.

Dan LUCA / Brussels