PES Group in the European Committee of the Regions

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PES Group in the European Committee of the Regions

Stories and actions from progressive cities and regions in the EU. Housing, climate, equality - told by local leaders.

Follow for events, campaigns and live coverage. The PES Group in the Committee of the Regions is one of the four political Groups bringing together local and regional representatives from all over Europe: Mayors, President of Regions, regional and local councillors. As part of the European Socialist family, the PES Groups works closely together with the S&D Group in the European Parliament, the Party of European Socialists (PES) and the Foundation for European Progressive Studies (FEPS).

07/09/2026

Do you know what you’re actually breathing in? 🍃

Clean air is not a luxury. It is a public good and a matter of social justice.

Yet millions of Europeans breathe air that harms their health. And while air pollution affects everyone, its impacts are not felt equally: the people living, working and travelling in the most polluted areas often face the greatest risks.

On the International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies, we are calling for stronger action at every level of government. Especially our cities and regions have a huge role to play: from cleaner public transport and safer streets to greener urban spaces, better planning and climate action, local political choices can directly make the air we breathe healthier.

So, how clean is the air in your city? 👇

Source: European City Air Quality Viewer, European Environment Agency (2024).

07/09/2026

This is a warning for democracy. In Germany and across Europe.
For the first time since WWII, the far right has won a regional election in Germany.

The AfD took 43.8% of the vote in Saxony-Anhalt, more than doubling its 2021 result. Its regional branch has been officially classified as right-wing extremist by the state’s domestic intelligence service.

And we should be very clear about what it stands for.
👉A “cultural revolution” inspired by Orbán’s Hungary.
👉Attacks on asylum and migration.
👉Segregating refugee children and children with special needs in schools.
👉Dismantling public service broadcasting.
👉A Europe of “patriots” outside Schengen.

This is not just another election result.
The far right is closer to governing a German region than at any point since WWII.

Democracy cannot be taken for granted. Not in Europe. Not in our countries. Not in our cities and regions.
And it must be defended, everywhere.

06/09/2026

The far right doesn’t grow in a vacuum.

Across Europe, it is gaining influence. And too often, parts of the traditional right are choosing accommodation over confrontation.

So how should progressives respond?

At Democracy at its Roots, S&D Group President Iratxe García Pérez and former Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou bring together two generations of experience — from today’s shifting majorities in the European Parliament to the lessons Greece learned from the rise of Golden Dawn after the financial crisis.

How do we stop the normalisation of the far right?
How do we rebuild trust in democracy?
And how do we give people and communities the power to shape their future?

Because democracy cannot thrive without people believing they have a say in it.

📍 Olympia Theatre, Athens
📅 11 September 2026

City of Athens Χάρης Δούκας

05/09/2026

Same Union. Very different local realities. 🇪🇺

There are 85,951 municipalities across the EU.... but they are anything but evenly spread.

🇫🇷 France alone has 34,955.
🇮🇪 Ireland has just 31.

That matters because local government is where many of the decisions that shape everyday life are made from public services and housing to mobility and local investment.

So when we talk about “the local level” in Europe, we are talking about very different systems, scales and realities.

Where does your country rank? 👀

Source: European Local Government Report 2025, based on OECD/UCLG data.

02/09/2026

Democracy is under pressure. So what actually works?

How do progressives beat the far right?
How do we bring people back into democratic decision-making?
And how can cities and regions hold the line when democracy itself comes under attack?

At Democracy at its Roots, we’re moving from the threats to the solutions.

🇨🇭 Christina Kitsos, Mayor of Geneva
🇮🇹 Dario Nardella, Member of the European Parliament
🇩🇪 Antje Grotheer, President of the Bremen State Parliament & 1st Vice-President of the PES Group in the CoR

will bring lessons from the local, regional and European level — from citizen participation to winning against the far right and defending democratic institutions.

Because democracy isn’t only defended in parliaments.

It is built, tested and protected every day where people live.

📍 Olympia Theatre, Athens
📅 11 September 2026

City of Athens Χάρης Δούκας

01/09/2026

🚨 The city banned Pride. Then fined the people who marched.

In 🇷🇴, 55 people have been fined a total of €11,000 for taking part in the Pride march this July, after the city’s authorities refused to allow a safe, visible route. For the fourth year in a row.

✊ Romania’s Constitution protects the right to peaceful assembly, and LGBTIQ+ organisations will be challenging the fines in court.

And there is another question Europe cannot ignore: 🇪🇺 How can a city receive millions in EU funding while fundamental rights are being denied to its residents? EU funding should strengthen communities, not support authorities that push minorities out of public life.

We stand with Oradea Pride 🏳️‍🌈 and everyone who took to the streets earlier this year.

Because Pride was never just a parade. It was a protest. It still is. 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

31/08/2026

Who gets to shape the cities and regions we live in? That’s a democratic question.

For more than a decade, Paris made bold political choices about its streets, mobility, public space and how the city responds to climate change.

🚶 More room for people.
🚲 More space for cycling.
🌳 Greener streets.
🌡️ A city adapting to a hotter climate.

And those choices changed what everyday life in the city looks like.

At , Anne Hidalgo, former Mayor of Paris and Global Ambassador of Global Covenant of Mayors, will share lessons from the Paris transformation.

Because local politics is where big ideas become visible: street by street, neighbourhood by neighbourhood.

And Paris has plenty to teach us.

📍 Olympia Theatre, Athens
🗓️ 11 Septembe

30/08/2026

Yes, we have a type.

29/08/2026

Digital progress ≠ social progress. 🛑

Estonia 🇪🇪 is one of Europe’s digital leaders. But it also has one of EU’s largest gender pay gaps.

That contrast matters.

Estonia shows us how AI alone won’t make society more equal. You can build the most advanced digital society in Europe, but technology cannot erase inequalities that already exist in society. ⛓️‍💥

Our data reflects the world 🌏 we have built: including its biases, inequalities and power structures.

We cannot just make the technology smarter. We have to make society fairer first.

💬 Toomas Sarapuu, Member of Võru City Council 🇪🇪

28/08/2026

Local roots. European action. That’s how democracy holds.

To bring the debates at to a close, two progressive voices will take the stage in Athens:

🏙️ Kata Tüttő - Tüttő Kata - Kata Tüttő
🌹 Krzysztof Śmiszek - Krzysztof Śmiszek - Vice-President of Party of European Socialists

One represents Europe’s cities and regions. The other helps lead Europe’s progressive political family.

After a morning of debates on how to protect and strengthen democracy from the local level up, they will bring the discussion together with one clear message:
democracy is built from the ground up and defended at every level.

📍 Olympia Theatre, City of Athens
🗓️ 11 September

Adresse

Rue Belliard, 101
Brussels
1040

Téléphone

+3222822223

Site Web

http://www.pes.cor.europa.eu/

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