Identity and Economic Rationality: Explaining Attitudes towards the EU in a Time of Crisis

European citizens’ attitudes increasingly influence and constrain the process of European integration. In the context of the East-European enlargement, fearing low turnout and a possible rejection in the domestic referenda on the EU accession, some countries, such as Hungary, Poland, and Croatia, amended their constitutions. The citizens of Ireland voted twice to accept the Treaty of Nice (in 2001 and 2002) and the Treaty of Lisbon (in 2008 and 2009) and the elections for the European Parliament (EP) saw a record low turnout in 2014 (42.54%) since the members of the EP (MEPs) became directly elected in 1979 (61.99%) (EP data). Hence, public opinion is crucial to the relationship between the EU and the member states [Taken from first page]