Samenvatting

Leading up to the European parliamentary elections in June 2009, the
question to which extent political parties are able to engage citizens through strategic marketing efforts regains significance in the public discourse. The paper analyzes both the origins and trends of political marketing to distill its effect on voters and elections. It finds that marketing, despite of having become an essential part of the political action repertoire, has created effects contrary to its objectives, hindering valid information provision and reinforcing apathy towards politics. Due to these shortcomings, it is largely insufficient in achieving a meaningful contribution to bridging the
widely-perceived democratic deficit in the European Union.