EU readies for key elections with far right forecast to surge

Far-right candidates including France's Marine Le Pen (L), Hungary's Viktor Orban (C) and Italy's Giorgia Meloni (R) are appealing to voters. © STEPHANE DE SAKUTIN, ATTILA KISBENEDEK, Ludovic MARIN / AFP

Brussels (AFP) – EU voters go to the polls in a week's time, with far-right, nationalist parties expected to do well in the bloc's next parliament in a time of social and geopolitical uncertainty.

The outcome of the June 6-9 elections will help determine the make-up of the next European Commission, whose chief Ursula von der Leyen is hoping to earn a second term.